Piece by Piece
by danceisthewindowtoyoursoul
Summary: Cat and Robbie are married. And while Cat was able to walk down the isle like she was determined to, the accident still haunts her and her husband almost everyday. Now enjoying their life as a married couple, something unexpected happens. Will they be able to get through it? Sequel to 'Shattered'. Updates might be slow because school is starting again.
1. Chapter 1

**_So...I was gonna wait and publish this on Friday night after my life got severely less hectic, but I decided I couldn't wait that long and that I'd just post the first chapter tonight. I'll try to update this as often as I can in the next few days. Hope you all enjoy! ~XOXO_**

* * *

 _C_ _at's POV_

It's three am and I can't sleep.

There's a million thoughts running through my head right now and I can't seem to keep them at bay long enough to relax and drift off. I'm also laying in an uncomfortable position and can't move because Robbie's arm is wrapped protectively around my waist. Normally, I wouldn't mind sleeping like this. I actually usually enjoy it. But my arm is pinned underneath me right now and I can't move it without waking him up. And I don't want to do that. He has to get up for work in three hours.

Then again, so do I.

I was able to find a job as a secretary for one of the law firms in the business district downtown. It doesn't put a lot of strain on my legs, since I'm basically sitting all day, and if for some reason I need to get up and walk somewhere, I usually don't have to go far. My office is also only about two and a half blocks from Robbie's. So it's easy for him to pick me up and drop me off every day, since we only have one car and I refuse to drive anyways, and every once and a while we'll meet for lunch if our breaks fall at the same time.

It's definitely not what I saw myself doing, and I don't make nearly as much as Robbie does. But I make enough. And if what I think is true actually _is_ true, we're going to need the extra money.

We had taken our honeymoon about two weeks after our wedding, spending the last full week of October in Paris. It was beautiful, but not very handicap friendly. Yes, I can somewhat walk on my own, but doing so takes a lot out of me. So being on my feet all day, then returning to the hotel to do what all newlyweds do on their honeymoons every night, it exhausted me. We got back to our apartment on a Saturday night around ten o'clock, and I slept until two in the afternoon the next day. Still, I don't think I've recovered fully from the trip, even though it was almost a month and a half ago. I still always feel tired, and I sometimes feel sick for no reason at all.

Which leads to the reason why I can't sleep.

We completely threw caution to the wind. I mean, why wouldn't we? We're newlyweds, or at least we _were_ , I'm not sure if we're still considered to be or not, but at the time we were. And most of the time we were too caught up in everything to care or take notice.

I shift my eyes to look out the window, staring at the Christmas lights Robbie and I strung along the railing of our balcony last weekend. Last year at this time, I didn't think I'd have anything close to the life I have now. Who knows what it will look like this time next year?

All those months ago when I was laying in that hospital bed, asking my mom if it was even possible for me to _have_ kids, and she told me yes, not every part of me believed her. The parts that did, didn't think it would happen so easily. I was planning on months and months of trying, maybe even having to result to fertility treatments or something, not being surprised like this.

I feel irresponsible. Yes, we're married, but we're young. I'm still 22 and Robbie is newly 23. We've only been married just over two months now, and I'm still not fully recovered from my accident. Then again, I might never be. But I'm still going to physical therapy once to two times a week, it's still hard for me to walk on my own, not impossible, but hard.

But I've always wanted to be a mom.

And Robbie has been talking about babies ever since we got engaged.

Then again, I might have been able to _get_ pregnant easily, but will I be able to _stay_ pregnant? Is my body healthy enough to carry a baby? I can barely walk. What if I miscarry? Or even worse, what if the baby is stillborn? I've been through enough emotional trauma in the past year, so has Robbie. Will we be able to handle it?

But what if I don't? What if everything goes fine and we both get what we've always wanted? A perfect, adorable, healthy little baby.

It had never really been a possibility in my head, not until recently at least. So I never talked to any of my doctors about it. I have no way of knowing what the outcome will or won't be.

I guess there's really no sense in worrying if I don't _know_ if I need to worry or not.

I can't take it anymore, I'm too uncomfortable. I yank my arm out from underneath my body, letting it hang over the edge of the bed, but waking Robbie in the process.

"Are you okay?" He mutters, obviously only half-conscious

"Yeah." I smile "I'm okay. Go back to sleep."

"Okay."

I don't want to get him excited until I know for sure.

Who knows? This could be nothing.


	2. Chapter 2

_Cat's POV_

I'm laying on the couch in the living room of our apartment, watching the evening news with Arlo curled up on the floor next to me, when Robbie appears out of our bedroom, freshly changed out of his work clothes.

"Alright, beautiful wife of mine," He exclaims "Who's ready to make some Christmas cookies! God, I love saying that!"

"Saying what?" I smirk, not even taking my attention off the TV "Christmas cookies?"

"No." He kneels down next to me, kissing the tip of my nose "Wife. It has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

"Yeah." I laugh "It does."

"Come on, get up." He tells me, getting to his feet "Those cookies won't make themselves."

"In a second, I wanna watch the weather report for tomorrow."

"That's what smartphones are for!"

He picks me up bridal style and spins me around a few times before carrying me to the kitchen, causing me to squeal with laughter. Arlo, who hadn't been paying that close of attention and only heard me start making noise, follows us, growling at Robbie.

"Its okay, baby." I assure the dog as Robbie sets me down on my feet in the kitchen "Daddy isn't hurting me, I'm fine."

"I would never hurt Mommy." Robbie says as he makes sure that I've regained my balance "You good?"

"Yeah." I smile "All good. Let's make those cookies!"

I open the cabinet closest to me and grab my mom's sugar cookie recipe that we have taped to the inside.

"Um..." I hesitate "How many eggs do we have?"

Both Robbie and I had eggs for breakfast this morning, and I know there weren't many left. This recipe calls for two, so we might be safe, we might not.

"I'll check." Robbie spins around in the small kitchen and opens the fridge "We have one. How many do we need?"

"Two."

"Oh..."

"Yeah."

"Well." He sighs "I guess I'll just run to the store real fast and get some! No big deal."

"Alright." I shrug "Just don't take too long, okay? I've been craving this cookie dough all day."

Not that I can even eat the cookie dough. If I actually _am_ pregnant, the raw egg could hurt the baby.

"Okay." He laughs, kissing my cheek "I'll be back soon. I love you!"

"I love you too!" I call to him as he grabs his jacket and car keys, and walks out the door

I check the recipe and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then check the clock.

The nearest grocery store is ten minutes away, so that gives me hopefully _at least_ twenty five minutes of alone time. Slowly, I start making my way to the bathroom.

"Listen, Arlo..." I tell the dog as I walk "I'm swearing you to secrecy, okay? You're not allowed to tell Dad about _anything_ that I do while he's gone, understand?"

The dog stays put, cocking his head to the side and staring at me as I enter the bathroom and close the door behind me.

Time to find out what's really going on.

I keep my pads and tampons underneath the sink, and the whole concept of periods freaks Robbie out, he wouldn't dare touch them, making it the perfect place to hide a pregnancy test. Using my period to judge if I'm pregnant or not isn't exactly reliable, since I've only been getting it every other month since the accident screwed up my entire body.

I pull the test out of the packaging and sit down to take it, a million thoughts running through my mind.

Part of me is scared, not sure if my body can handle being pregnant, or if it's even safe. The other part of me really hopes I _am_ pregnant. I know Robbie would be a great dad. I'd like to think I'd be an okay mom, assuming my body allows me to keep up.

The test tells me I have to wait thirty minutes for results, so I know I won't have my answer before Robbie gets back. Which means I have to find somewhere to store the test.

I slide it back into the plastic sleeve it came in and slip it into the back pocket of my jeans, opening the door to the bathroom and re-entering the main part of the apartment. Arlo is still sitting in the exact same place, giving me a look that almost feels like he _knows_ I'm up to something.

"Don't look at me like that!" I exclaim

I grab my purse out of the hall closet and dig out the pouch where I store my 'just in case' tampons and stick the test inside. Hopefully Robbie won't go digging through my purse looking for tampons in the next few hours.

* * *

That night, I'm able to sleep, but not well. It's like a dreamless, exhausted, sleep. Not beneficial at all.

Robbie hasn't left my side since the minute he got home with the eggs tonight, so the test is still sitting in my purse, unchecked. It's driving me insane. I just want to know, that way I know if I should be relieved or worried. However, I know that whatever the outcome is, I'll probably be a little of both.

But of course, Robbie's arm is wrapped around my waist again, and I can't move without waking him.

But I need to know.

He's out like a light! If I wake him up, there's not a doubt in my mind he'll fall right back to sleep. So I sit up. He stirs a little, but doesn't wake up.

Thank god.

I'm awkward when I walk now, and heavy on my feet, so it's a miracle both him and Arlo stay asleep as I attempt to creep out of our bedroom. I try to be as quiet as possible as I walk through the apartment, flipping on the light in the hallway so I can see. I know the door to the closet creeks if you open it past a certain point, so I only open it as far as I need to grab my purse.

I don't know if I want the result to be positive or negative. I mean, I'm married. I should want this, right? Even if we're not sure if it's safe. I should want this. I've been brainstorming baby names since Robbie and I had our one year anniversary of dating, which unfortunately now will be remembered as a _different_ anniversary, but that's besides the point.

Either way, everything will be fine. Yes, everything will be fine no matter what, right?

I hope so.

As much as I want to say 'I know so', I just can't.

I find myself holding my breath as I open my purse, removing the small pouch from inside. I grab the plastic sleeve the test is inside. It's opaque, so I can't see the result.

"Just count to three..." I whisper to myself "Come on, Cat. It's just a piece of plastic, nothing scary..."

1...2...3

"Oh my god." I gasp

Because there's two blue lines staring back at me.


	3. Chapter 3

_Cat's POV_

"Hey you." Robbie whispers "You slept through the alarm. Wake up, it's time to go to work."

I open my eyes and find myself face to face with my husband, who's on his knees in a tabletop position, straddled over me. Not exactly what I was expecting to see, so I scream.

"Woah!" He laughs, sitting back on his knees "Good morning to you too."

"Sorry." I apologize, sitting up "I just didn't expect you to be so close to me."

"You're forgiven." He leans forwards and kisses me "But come on, I let you sleep as late as possible, but now you gotta get up."

"Why didn't you just wake me up when the alarm went off?" I ask

I'm barely going to have enough time to get ready now.

"I know you've had a hard time sleeping the past couple nights or so..." He sighs "So when not even the alarm could wake you up, I just didn't have the heart to try."

Oh right, last night. The test...

 _I'm pregnant._

Should I tell him now?

No. I can't just out and say I'm pregnant. I need to get more creative than that, especially with our first. Especially since neither one of us was sure how possible this would be.

"That's very sweet of you." I smile "But I'm not going to have time to shower now!"

"You can shower tonight when we get home from work." He shrugs

"Maybe you could join me?" I smirk

"I'd like that." He leans in and kisses me "But that's for later. Come on, get dressed. We don't wanna be late."

* * *

"I actually _need_ to shower, you know." I laugh as Robbie kisses my neck "Seriously, before we run out of hot water!"

"You'll be fine." He assures me "We've only been in here for like five minutes."

"Try twenty, Mr. Shapiro." I giggle, leaning into the water and washing the conditioner out of my hair

"Wait, really?"

"At least."

"Well you take _forever_ to wash everything." He tells me

"Because _someone_ was distracting me."

"I guess time flies when you're having fun." He smirks, wrapping his arms around my waist and kissing my neck again

"No no no!" I stop him "Later, okay? You need to walk the dog before he destroys the apartment."

"Alright, fine." He pouts as I shut the water off "Only if we can continue later."

"We'll see." I tease him

"I love it when you play hard to get."

Little does he know, I'm not playing. It honestly all depends on how I'm feeling later. I just stood in the shower for twenty minutes with little to no support. That takes a lot out of me, and who knows if the baby will want to cooperate or not.

Robbie pulls back the shower curtain and steps out first, wrapping a towel around his waist, then handing one to me.

The temperature outside the shower is _at least_ twenty degrees cooler than inside it, so when I step out onto the tile floor, I feel a little light headed.

"Woah." I stumble backwards a bit

"Hey!" Robbie catches me "You okay?"

"Yeah." I nod, steadying "Yeah, I'm good."

"You're sure? You don't look so good..."

"Yeah I'm...move."

"What?"

"Move!" I repeat, pushing him out of the way so I can hopefully make it to the sink before puke flies all over the bathroom.

"I don't think you're okay..." Robbie sighs, rubbing my back

"No." I shake my head once everything has finished flying out of my mouth "I'm fine, I promise."

"Come on..." He wraps an arm around my waist "You might feel better of you put some pajamas on, or something."

"Robbie I-"

"Cat, that's like the third time in the past two weeks." He helps me out of the bathroom and into our bedroom "I'm worried about you! You should really see a doctor or something."

"I'll call in the morning, okay?" I tell him

It's not a lie, I have to make a doctor's appointment at some point.

At least he's still completely clueless, that will make the surprise even better.

"Okay." He nods

He picks me up bridal style and lays me down on my side of our bed. My towel slips a bit, but it's not like I actually care. We're married, and he was just in the shower with me anyways.

"What do you want?' He asks "To wear, I mean."

"Shorts and a hoodie."

"Okay."

He digs through the second drawer of my dresser and finds a pair of yellow soffee shorts, tossing them to me. Then he pulls open another drawer to start looking for a hoodie, when I stop him.

"No!" I whine

"What?"

"I wanna wear one of yours..."

"Alright." He sighs, walking over to our closet and turning the light on

He grabs his old Cal State sweatshirt off one of the shelves and tosses it to me.

"I need stuff to wear underneath!" I remind him

"I'm workin' on it." He laughs "And just for the record, I'd be _totally_ okay with you going commando..."

"Robbie!"

"Relax!" He grins, bringing over a pair of underwear, a sports bra, and a tank top "You good?"

"Yeah..." I shrug "I already feel ten times better being out of the bathroom, it was too hot in there."

"Well that's because you were in there." He leans down and kisses me quickly before turning to get dressed himself "You're hot!"

"And you're a goon!"

"I'll take what I can get." He shrugs, pulling on a t-shirt "I'll tell you what, I'll take Arlo to that pizza place down the street and pick up dinner for us. How does that sound?"

"Perfect." I smile

"You gonna get dressed?" He asks

"Eventually."

"Alright." He laughs "I'll be back soon, okay?"

"Okay."

"Come on Arlo!" He zips up his jeans and buttons them, then walks out to the main part of the apartment "We'll be back soon, okay? I love you."

"I love you, too." I smile

I hear him wrestle with Arlo to get the leash on, but the moment the door slams, I dress myself as quickly as possible.

I have a plan, and only about twenty minutes to execute it.

* * *

"You moved." Robbie chuckles when he re-enters the apartment, Alro's leash in one hand, pizza in the other

"I did."

I'm sitting on the couch, flipping through one of the magazines that had been sitting on the coffee table.

Robbie bends down and unclips Arlo's leash, the dog runs right to me.

"Hi baby!" I smile "Hi! Did you have a nice walk? Did you?"

"Are you ready to eat?" Robbie laughs, setting the pizza down on our table

"In a minute." I tell him, standing up "I want to give you something first."

It's a small present, wrapped in Christmas paper.

"A Christmas present?" He meets me half way between the couch and the table "Christmas isn't for another two weeks..."

"I want you to open it now though." I tell him "Go on, open it!"

"Okay?" He chuckles, tearing at the paper

It's a rolled up t-shirt.

There's a one-hour t-shirt print shop down the street from my building, so I ordered it online today as soon as I got to work. Then sent one of the firm's interns to pick it up around lunchtime. It's navy blue with light blue lettering.

He opens up the shirt and something falls to the floor, but he doesn't notice. He's too busy admiring the shirt.

"World's Greatest Dad." He reads aloud "Um, is this from Arlo or...?"

"Why don't you see what fell out of it?" I suggest "Look down."

"What?" He glances down at his face "Oh. Oh! Oh my god! Cat are you?"

"I am!" I grin

"Oh my god!" He repeats "Oh my god!"

He picks me up and spins me around in the air, pressing a kiss to my lips as he does so.

"We're gonna have a baby!"

"Yeah!" I smile "We are! But Robbie..."

"But what?"

"I don't know how 'safe' this is..." I admit "I honestly didn't expect this to happen so soon, so I never brought it up to any of my doctors. It could be risky."

"It's a risk I'm willing to take if you are." He says "Are you?"

"Yeah." I nod, smiling "Yeah I am!"

"We're gonna be parents!" He exclaims

"We're gonna be parents."


	4. Chapter 4

_Cat's POV_

"Hi baby." Robbie whispers to my abdomen "Do you think it can hear me?"

"I dunno." I laugh "I haven't looked into it yet."

We're both laying I our bed, watching TV before we go to sleep. Robbie pushed my shirt up to reveal my bare stomach, and has been talking to it for the past few minutes. Arlo lays curled up on the floor at the foot of the bed.

"Do you want a boy or a girl?" He smiles, tracing circles on my bare skin with his finger

"Oh are you talking to _me_ now?" I smirk

"Yes." He chuckles

"Honestly?" I sigh "As long as it comes out happy and healthy, I don't care."

"That's such a typical answer."

"Like you don't want the same thing?" I roll my eyes "We're lucky I even _got_ pregnant, Robbie. We can't be picky about it."

"I know, I know!" He assures me "I'm just excited is all. I can't stop thinking about if it will be a boy or a girl, and what he or she will look like, _who_ they'll look like. Ya know?"

"I know." I nod "I've been thinking about the same things."

"Let me rephrase my question then." He says "What do you _think_ it is? I've heard that the mothers have this like intuition where they can just _tell_."

"Oh I think it's too early for that still." I tell him, resting a hand on my stomach

"Come on."

"Well...in those nightmares I still have sometimes...the baby is always a boy." I sigh "So, maybe that's a sign it's a boy."

"Then wouldn't it make sense for you to want a girl then?" He raises an eyebrow at me "So the nightmares don't come true?"

"Robbie." I groan "I don't care as long as-"

"As long as it's healthy." He finishes for me "I know."

"Glad we're on the same page." I laugh

"So...when do you wanna tell everyone?" He asks

"Define everyone."

"Our families." He shrugs "Our friends?"

"Maybe we could tell our families at Christmas?" I suggest "That way we've been to the doctor and gotten everything squared away, and then they're all in the same spot so we can tell everyone all at once."

"Then my parents would find out before yours." He reminds me "You'd be okay with that?"

We wanted to be able to spend Christmas with _both_ of our families, but our apartment wasn't big enough to fit everyone. So we agreed to spend Christmas Eve with his parents, and Christmas Eve with mine.

"What difference will eighteen hours make?"

"I'm just checking." He tells me "What about our friends?"

"Maybe once I make it into the second trimester?" I shrug "Or just when the time feels right."

"Okay." He laughs, taking my hand that was still resting on my stomach in his "You know, I think I can see a little bump."

"Oh can you now?" I raise an eyebrow at him

"Yeah." He chuckles "I think I can."

"I doubt that." I laugh "I'm not _that_ pregnant yet. Plus, _I_ can't even tell yet, and it's _my_ body."

"It's not _huge_." He tells me "Just a little thing. Like you had a big dinner."

"Alright maybe." I smirk

"Maybe."

"Maybe."

* * *

"Well Mrs. Shapiro..." My doctor, Doctor Fletcher smiles "According to these test results, you _are_ pregnant. We'll do a sonogram in a minute or two to determine how far along, and to see if we can find a heartbeat yet..."

"Yay!" I smile up at Robbie from the examination table

He grins and leans down, kissing me quickly before turning back to the doctor.

"But..."

"Oh there's always a but." I groan

"We have some things that we need to talk about first." The doctor tells us

"Alright." I sigh

I just want to see the baby!

"Pregnancy would've been difficult on your body to begin with, given your tiny build." She tells us "Add the accident you're still recovering from onto that, things are going to get even _more_ difficult."

"Okay." I nod, looking up at Robbie for some reassurance "It won't affect the baby's development at all, will it?"

"It shouldn't." She shakes her head "I mean, you run the same risks as any other woman does. It obviously didn't effect your fertility, since you got pregnant so easily. However, I'm slightly more concerned about _your_ wellbeing. Your accident damaged your spinal cord, correct?"

"Yes." I nod "I was temporarily paralyzed from the waist down, walking can still be difficult at times."

"That worries me a little bit." She admits "As the baby grows, he or she will start to put more and more pressure on your lower back. That will make you very uncomfortable, and it could possibly make walking more difficult as well. Depending on what happens, you may be out on bed rest, and from there if we think there could possibly be more risks for you and the baby, we could have to induce labor early."

"Oh..." I glance down, Robbie squeezes my shoulder reassuringly

"It's not light information, I realize that." Doctor Fletcher sighs "On a brighter note, let's see if we can get you two a sonogram picture to take home with you. Just roll your shirt up to your bra, and I'll get the wand all ready to go."

I look at Robbie as I roll my shirt up, he shrugs. I knew this was going to be risky, but I already love my baby, and I'd do anything for it. If that means bed rest, then so be it.

The sonogram gel is cold on my stomach, and the wand tickles. It takes everything in me to not squeal and giggle. After a few minutes of searching, a purring sound fills the room.

"What's that?" I ask "Is that normal?"

"That's just the baby's heartbeat." Doctor Fletcher smiles "Or I guess _heartbeats_ in this case."

" _Heartbeats_?" Robbie almost chokes "As in more than one?"

"As in two." The doctor turns the screen towards us to look "Congratulations, it looks like you're having twins."

"Twins?" I repeat "Oh my god..."

We just got done taking about how difficult carrying _one_ baby could be, and I'm having two.

"It's okay." Robbie nods, kneeling down so we're both eye level "It'll be okay. We're even luckier now, right?"

"Right." I agree

But on the inside, I'm scared to death.


	5. Chapter 5

_Robbie's POV_

"Careful." I grab Cat's hand and help her step up onto my parent's front porch

Stairs and steps of any kind are still difficult for her.

"Thank you." She smiles

"You're more than welcome." I laugh, pulling the screen door open, then opening the front door "Mom? Dad? We're here!"

I help cat step up into the house again, then kick off my shoes at the front door. Even though I'm a grown man, who's married with babies on the way, I still can't help but feel like my mother will ground me if I track any dirt into her house.

"Hello!" My mom greets us, entering the front hall "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas!" Cat gives her a hug "We brought Christmas cookies!"

"Wonderful!" My mom smiles "Just go ahead and set them down on the kitchen counter."

"Kay!" Cat smiles, slipping off her shoes and making her way into the kitchen

"Hi Mom." I grin

"Hello Robbie." She kisses my cheek "Merry Christmas! Come on, your father is in the living room. And dinner is almost ready."

"Sounds great."

I follow my mom into the kitchen, where Cat already is. I walk up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist. She leans back against me, looking up at me, so I lean down and give her a quick peck.

"You okay?" I ask her

"Just tired." She shrugs "I've been on my feet making cookies all day."

"Do you wanna sit?'

"I'm okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Oh Cat!" My mother pulls out on of the stools at the breakfast bar "Sit sit. Relax, take a load off! It's Christmas Eve!"

"See?" I laugh "Go ahead and sit."

"Alright fine." Cat sighs "Dinner smells delicious, by the way."

"Roast turkey and mashed potatoes." My mother tells her "One of Robbie's favorites."

"Mine too." Cat agrees

"That's my girl." I smile, rubbing her shoulders

"Why hello there!" My dad enters the kitchen "I didn't even hear you come in."

"I guess that's my fault." I move to give him a hug "Merry Christmas, Dad."

"Merry Christmas." He tells me "And how's my favorite daughter-in-law doing?"

"More like you're _only_ daughter in law." Cat laughs "I'm good, how are you?"

"Can't complain." He smiles "Is Robbie being good to you? Or do I need to beat his ass?"

"He's been great to me." She grins, reaching for my hand "In fact, we have some news we'd like to share with both of you."

"Right now?" I ask

"Might as well." She shrugs "And I've already brought it up, so now we kind of have to."

"Okay, do you want to tell them or should I?"

"You go ahead, they're you're parents." She smiles

"Alright." I nod "Well...Mom, Dad, well um, I can't come up with any creative way to say this really so I'm just gonna come right out with it. We're expecting."

"Really?" My mother gasps "Oh! That's fantastic you two! Congratulations!"

"Thanks." Cat blushes

"When are you due?"

"July 24th." Cat tells her "But my doctor thinks it will actually be sometime at the beginning of July because, well...it's twins!"

"Twins?" My dad exclaims "Twins! This just keeps getting better and better!"

"This is so exciting!" My mom grins

"We're really excited." I nod

"Yes." Cat agrees "Very, _very_ excited."

* * *

"ARLO!" Cat scolds "Down!"

"Oh he's fine." Her mother assures her "He's just happy to be back at this house. I bet he misses it."

"I dunno." I laugh "He seems to like the apartment complex a lot."

"Only because there's other dogs there."

We're spending Christmas Day at the Valentine's with Cat's parents and some of her aunts, uncles, and cousins, and her dad's parents. Much larger of a get together than the one we had last night.

"Hey there, big cousin!" Her younger cousin, Noah, grins "Big cousin-in-law."

"Noah." I nod

"Noah!" Cat exclaims "Hi! I feel like I haven't seen you in forever! Robbie! Help me stand up!"

"Okay."

I stand up myself, then help her to her feet. She takes a few steps towards Noah then throws her arms around his neck, engulfing him in a giant hug.

I met him a few times when we were in high school, but I know that he and Cat were very close growing up. They were the closest in age out of all her cousins, I think the next closest one was ten years older than her, and Noah was the youngest, so naturally at family events like this, they were always together. He's three years younger than her, and goes to school in North Carolina, and hadn't been able to make it home for our wedding. Cat was heartbroken, but I can tell she's happy to see him.

"You've grown so much, holy shit!" She smiles "How's school? Everything going okay?"

"Yeah yeah, everything is great." He assures her "But I'm more concerned about you! How are your legs? The last time I saw you, you could barely walk with the help of Uncle Paul and Aunt Diane!"

"Lots of PT." She tells him " _A lot_. I'm still going."

"It's hard to tell anything even happened at all!"

"If you look closely, I still lean to my right a little when I walk." She shrugs "And I'm slower than a snail, I can't do stairs, and it still sorta hurts a bit."

"Oh." He frowns "Well, if you need me while I'm here, just let me know. But it seems like Robbie's got everything under control."

"Yeah." Cat smiles back at me "He does. He's all I need."

I feel myself blush.

"Oh!" Cat exclaims "I have great news!"

"Really?" Noah raises an eyebrow at her "What is it?"

"Excuse me?" Cat calls out to everyone in the living room, which is only about seven people, but both her parents are here "Robbie and I have an announcement to make!"

I stand up and wrap an arm around her waist, letting her lean into me.

"I'm pregnant!" She smiles

"Holy shit!" Noah exclaims as the room fills with gasps and grins

"Cat! Sweetheart!" Her mom gasps "Really?"

"Really." She grins "I have a sonogram picture in my purse, do you wanna see?"

"Yes!"

"I'll get it for you." I tell her "Go ahead and sit down."

"Thanks." She kisses my cheek then sits down

I grab her purse from the banister of the stairs and return to the living room.

"Here you go." I hand it to her and sit down next to her, draping my arm over her shoulders.

"Here." She pulls the sonogram picture out and hands it to her mother "I'm due July 24th."

"Oh my goodness." Her mom smiles "It's beautiful."

"What's that right there?" Her dad asks, pointing to the second baby

"That's baby B." I smile

"Twins?" Her mom exclaims

"Twins." Cat nods

"Congratulations, both of you."

"Thank you." Cat and I both say in unison

"Cat, sweetheart, I'm thrilled to death, really..." Her father sighs "But is this safe? You're still recovering..."

"It's risky, yes." Cat nods "I'll probably be uncomfortable, I'll probably be put on bed rest at some point, and there's a chance that they might have to deliver the babies early but..."

"But we're considering it a blessing." I finish for her

"Yes." Cat agrees "We weren't sure I'd be able to get pregnant _at all_ , so the fact we've been blessed with two...we're very lucky."

"We're going to be grandparents!" Her mom smiles

"Yeah." Her dad grins, taking the sonogram picture to look for himself "We are."


	6. Chapter 6

_Cat's POV_

"I'M BACK!" Robbie announces as he enters the apartment

"Hey." I smile as he comes around the corner, into the living room "Get everything we need?"

"I did." He leans over the couch and gives me a quick kiss "Hello there beautiful wife and children of mine."

"Are you gonna greet us like that every single time for the next seven months?" I laugh

"Probably." He chuckles, going back to the kitchen to put away the few groceries he needed to go to the store for

I slowly hoist myself off the couch and walk to join him, Arlo at my heels.

"This the kind you wanted?" He asks me, pulling a pint of ice cream out of one of the bags "The Half Baked or whatever it's called?"

"Yes!" I exclaim taking the ice cream from him "Thank you!"

"You're welcome." He chuckles as I open one of the drawers, pulling out a spoon and dig into the ice cream immediately "What even is that anyways?"

"Cookie dough and brownie pieces." I tell him "It's delicious. I've been craving it all day."

"From the way you just tore into it, I believe that."

"It's not _my_ fault!" I exclaim "It's the babies..."

"Sure." He smirks

"It is!"

"I know it is, baby. I do." He laughs "Hey, look what I got you for tonight."

"Is it another pint of this ice cream?" I ask "'Cuz I might eat this whole thing."

Beck and Jade invited us over to their townhouse to ring in the new year with Andre and Tori, since they knew I probably wouldn't be up to going out to a club or someplace similar because I'm still recovering from the accident. Little do they know I have another reason now. Or two reasons, I guess.

"No." He pulls a bottle of sparkling grape juice out of the bag as well "Ta da!"

"Kiddie champagne?" I raise an eyebrow at him

"This is safe for you to drink, right?"

"Yeah I think so..." I take the bottle from him "I mean, it's just fruit juice, and that's one hundred percent safe to drink. Yeah, it's fine."

"Good." He leans over and kisses me "I wouldn't want you to feel left out."

* * *

"AW BECK!" Andre exclaims from the next room over "FUCK YOU, MAN!"

"What on earth is going on in there?" I ask

"That sounds like Call of Duty to be one hundred percent honest with you." Jade sighs, taking a sip of her drink "Or some other video game similar to it."

"Aren't they a little _old_ to be playing video games?"

"Aren't we a little old to be playing monopoly?" Tori reminds us

"They took the TV!" Jade exclaims "What else are we gonna do?"

"Talk?"

"We're talking..."

"This game is never gonna end." I groan "We own equal amounts of property, there's no way we'll be able to bankrupt each other."

"She has a point." Tori agrees

"Okay fine." Jade shrugs "We can put it away."

"Thank god."

"CONGRATULATIONS CAT!" Beck yells

"How'd he know she won?" Tori looks at Jade confused

"I don't think he's talking about the game..." Jade narrows her eyes at me "What's up, Cat?"

"Hang on a second." I tell them "ROBBIE!"

"WHAT?"

"COME HERE!"

I hear Andre and Beck groan, presumably because they had to pause the game and a few seconds later, Robbie appears in Beck and Jade's kitchen.

"Is everything okay?" He looks concerned

"Did you tell them?" I hiss

"Sorry." He cringes "It just sorta slipped out."

"It's fine." I sigh "Do they know all of it? Or just half of it?"

"Just half."

"Well get them in here so we can tell them the other half after I tell Tori and Jade about the first half."

"Okay."

"What?" Jade looks incredibly confused "Could you follow that?"

"No." Tori shakes her head

"Robbie and I have some news..." I turn back to my two friends "We were going to wait and tell you all at once, but now that Beck and Andre know I have to tell you..."

"You're pregnant." Jade smirks

"Yeah." I grin "I am. We just found out a couple weeks ago."

"Holy shit!" She exclaims "Cat that's fantastic!"

"Yeah it is!" Tori adds "Congratulations!"

"Thank you." I smile

"Alright we're here." Andre enters the kitchen and stands behind Tori, draping his arms over her shoulders

"Yeah." Beck comes in too "What's up?"

"Well..." I smile at Robbie "Okay, so you all know I'm pregnant now, but there's one more thing."

"Is Robbie pregnant too?" Jade jokes

"No!" Robbie exclaims

"Shhhh, babe." I laugh "We're not just having one baby..."

"We're having two." Robbie tells them all

"Oh my god!" Tori and Jade exclaim in unison

"Woah!" Andre chuckles

"We're excited." I say "Really excited."

"Do you know what they are yet?"

"No not yet." Robbie shakes his head "We're sort of hoping for one of each though."

"Not that we would mind having two boys or two girls." I insist

"Right." He agrees

"When are you due?" Tori asks me

"July 24th." I tell her "But they'll probably be born at the beginning of July since they're twins."

"Yeah." Robbie laughs "And Cat is tiny, there's not much room in there."

"Hey!"

"I never said that was a bad thing!"

* * *

"5...4...3..." We all count down in unison, gathered around Beck and Jade's TV, watching the official New Year's countdown "2...1...HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Everyone laughs and takes a sip of their respective beverage, sparkling grape juice for me, champagne for everyone else. Robbie stops and presses a kiss to my lips.

"Happy New Year." He smiles

"Happy New Year." I giggle "I love you."

"I love you too." He tells me "Hey, guess what?'

"What?"

"We're gonna be parents this year."

"That's still a long way off." I laugh "And it will feel like _forever_ because we're so excited about it."

"I know." He sighs, leaning down so his face is near my abdomen "Happy New Year, babies. We love you."

"You're such a goon." I tell him

"But I'm your goon." He kisses me again "And I'm so thankful you're still here with me, if I had lost you back in May...I don't know what I would've done."

"You didn't lose me." I turn his face to look at me "Okay? I'm still here. I'm a little broken still, but I'm still here."

"I know." He grins "I know."


	7. Chapter 7

_Cat's POV_

"Does the box of old yearbooks _really_ need to stay in the apartment?" I ask "Or can it go into the storage unit downstairs?"

"I dunno." Robbie shrugs "Do you want to keep it up here?"

"Do we really need to?"

"No."

"Well, then let's put it downstairs." I decide "The more room we have up here the better."

When I moved into the apartment, Robbie and I combined a majority of our belongings. Anything that didn't have a place, got shoved in the spare bedroom. We don't have guests that often since our parents live in the area as do most of our friends, so we didn't really think it was a big deal. Now, in six and a half to seven months we're going to have two little guests that will need the room. Which means we need to start cleaning.

We've decided to do a little bit every Sunday afternoon, when we're both off work and we know we won't have other plans. At first, I didn't think it would actually take _that_ long. That was, until we actually started and we discovered just how much shit we actually have stored in here.

"Should I start taking the bed apart?" Robbie asks, gesturing to the full sized bed we have pushed up against the far wall

It was his from his parent's house. We figured we should have a bed, just in case we do have a guest sometime, and his just happened to be bigger. So that's what we brought.

"Maybe we should move that out last." I suggest "Just in case we _do_ actually end up having someone stay with us."

"Yeah, good idea." He agrees, grabbing a box and opening it up "These look like scrapbooks, are they yours?"

"Uhhh..." I glance into the box "No. They're yours. But I made them for you. Remember?"

Each year, for our anniversary, I would make him a scrapbook of everything that we had done or that had happened to us since the previous anniversary. This year, I'll probably just combine and do the past eighteen months, since we'll probably be celebrating our wedding anniversary now, rather than the day we started dating, since that date now holds another, more tainted memory.

Think of everything I'll have to put in this next scrapbook...the accident, the engagement, my recovery, the wedding, the birth of our twins...

"Oh yeah." He smiles "Let's see...Cat and Robbie, year one."

"Oh god." I laugh "We were _babies_ in that one."

"We were eighteen." He corrects me "Which I guess is technically the same thing...let's see...oh look at this! High school graduation! Weren't we cute?"

"Adorable." I roll my eyes and start sorting through another box

"That day we went to the pier that summer...and you tore your knee up when we went roller skating!"

"Oh my god, I remember that!" I exclaim, taking the book from him "That fucking hurt like hell!"

Sure enough, on the page, there's a picture of Robbie and I standing in front of the Santa Monica Pier boardwalk with our friends. There's another picture of the two of us asleep on the beach holding hands, and another of him carrying me through the water, but the rest of the page is dedicated to my knee.

I remember it was awful. We had rented skates for like an hour or so and I had been doing pretty well, until I tripped over a crack in the sidewalk (that I had apparently been warned about more than once), somersaulted, and ripped my knee open. There was blood everywhere, Robbie had to take his skates off and carry me to the first aid hut on the boardwalk. They couldn't do enough for me so I ended up going to the ER for stitches. I had a scar for years, but it faded eventually to the point now where you can't even see it unless you really look.

"It was nothing compared to the accident though..." I whisper

"Annnnnd we're gonna turn the page now..." Robbie leans over and flips a few pages ahead to our college move in days the following fall "Happy thoughts happy thoughts."

"Right." I agree "Happy thoughts."

* * *

"Ooh." I smirk "This one says my moodiness will start flaring up in the next few weeks, lucky you."

"Mine also says that." Robbie chuckles "I'll try to be as good as possible."

"You better."

We're both laying in bed, reading our respective baby books we had picked up on our way home from work the previous Friday.

"Robbie." I giggle "It says the babies are the size of grapes. That's so little!"

"Yeah?" He chuckles

"Mhm." I nod "And they're starting to develop teeth, and their organs, muscles and nerves are starting to work."

"Does it say when we'll be able to tell if they're boys or girls?" He asks

"Not for a few weeks still..." I sigh "What do you think they are?"

"I think it'd be cool to have one of each." He tells me "We've talked about this..."

"I know, I was just checking." I shrug "Would you be okay with having two of the same?"

"Of course. Would you?"

"Of course!" I exclaim "Oh god...Robbie. How are we going to take care of _two_ of them? We can barely remember to walk Arlo!"

"Woah woah woah! It's okay." He tries to comfort me "There's no need to cry, we'll be okay."

"What if they hate us?"

"Cat where is this coming from?" He wraps his arms around me and pulls my into a giant hug

"I dunno..." I sigh "I guess it just finally hit me. I mean, it was so surreal up until today. We started cleaning out the spare room and now we're reading the books and...and..."

"Shhhh..." He rubs my back "Everything is gonna be fine, I promise."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."


	8. Chapter 8

_Cat's POV_

"Robbie?" I roll over and shake my husband awake "Robbie, wake up."

"Hm?" He jolts awake, startled "Cat? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah everything is fine." I tell him "It's just..."

"Just what?"

"The babies want a milkshake..." I sigh "From Inside Out Burger..."

"Cat." He groans "It's two in the morning."

"I know! I'm sorry!" I apologize "I'm just really craving it and I can't sleep!"

"Alright..." He throws the sheets off his body and sits up "What kind?"

"Vanilla?"

"Kay." He rubs the sleep from his eyes and grabs his glasses off his bedside table "I'll be back in twenty minutes."

"I love you!" I call after him as he exits the bedroom

"I love you too!" He calls back

He flips on a light and I hear him fumbling with his keys. Then the door opens and slams shut, and he's gone.

I'm happy my cravings are somewhat normal. The babies really seem to like ice cream, first it was the Ben & Jerry's Half Baked, now it's vanilla milkshakes. Like I said, nothing too weird. At least not yet. We still have six and a half to seven months left to go.

"Isn't Daddy great?" I whisper, although I'm not sure to who, the babies don't have ears yet, at least not working ones.

I rest a hand on my stomach. I don't have much of a baby bump, but you can definitely tell there's something there. Combine my tiny stature with the fact that there's two babies in there, and I'm sure I'll be showing even more soon enough.

Arlo, who must've been woken up when Robbie started moving around, wanders into the bedroom and hops up onto the bed.

"Hey bub." I smile "Whatcha up to? Wanna lay here with me?"

He walks over to me, circles Robbie's empty spot a few times, then lays down, making himself more than comfortable.

"Alright, I guess you can lay there." I laugh "But only for a little while, okay? Dad is gonna want that back when he gets home."

* * *

"Bolden and Sons, how may I help you?" I answer the phone at my desk

"Yeah, I'm looking for Jared Stafford." The person on the other line says "He works for you, right?"

"He does." I confirm "But Mr. Stafford is out of the office at the moment, may I take a message?"

"Yeah, just tell him that Scott called." He tells me "I'll be at my office until five."

"I'll let him know." I smile "Have a nice day."

"Thanks, you too."

I hang up the phone, jot down the message on a post-it note, then go back to the files I had been organizing.

Not exactly where I saw myself ending up, answering phones, answering emails, sorting files, organizing meetings, sorting through the mail, and managing the inter-office communication, but work is work. And we need all the money we can get with two little ones on the way now. Hopefully I'll only be here for a little while.

"Mrs. Shapiro?" One of the interns, Kylie, appears in front of my desk "Has the mail come yet? It's my turn to distribute it today, apparently."

"Yup. It's right here." I smile and hand her the pile of mail "And I've told you before, Kylie. You're allowed to call me Cat, it's okay."

"I know." She laughs "But you're an adult, calling you by your first name is weird!"

"You're in college, you're an adult too." I remind her "And it's not like I'm all that much older than you anyway."

"But you're married! And pregnant! You're so much more mature than I am!"

"Go hand out the mail, Kylie." I chuckle

"Yes ma'am." She laughs, walking back into the office

The doors to the suite out offices are located in opens and a few men in suits walk in, presumably coming back from their lunch break.

"Hey Cat." They greet me

"Hi guys!" I smile "Oh! Jared? Someone named Scott called for you, he says he'll be at his office until five o'clock today."

"One of my clients." Jared tells the other guys he's with "It's always something. Thanks Cat."

"You're welcome."

The phone starts ringing again.

"Bolen and Sons." I answer "How may I help you?"

"Hi I'm looking for my beautiful wife, Cat." Robbie says

"Hey you." I smile "What's up?

"I had some downtime at work, I figured I'd call and check up make sure everything is-"

"Oh! Robbie!" I stop him "I'm getting another call hang on."

"Okay."

I put him on hold and answer the other call coming through.

"Bolden and Sons, this is Cat speaking. How may I help you?"

"Is Joesph House in?"

"Yes he is. Just a second, let me put you through."

I patch the call through then go back to Robbie.

"I'm back, sorry." I tell him "So what's going on?"

"Nothing." He says "Just checking in. You okay?"

"I guess." I shrug

"You guess?"

"I've had a stomach ache all morning." I tell him "And my back is starting to hurt."

"Do you think it's because of the babies or because of the accident?" He asks

"I dunno."

"Okay." He sighs "Well...only like five more hours and then we can go home."

"Yeah." I agree "Only five more hours."


	9. Chapter 9

_Cat's POV_

I'm not awake, but I'm not asleep either. I'm at some odd place in between, and I don't know why. It's weird and I don't like it, but I'm not sure how to leave.

"Cat?" I hear Robbie's voice say "Are you awake?"

"Mhhhnnn..." I moan

"Cat?" I think he's shaking my shoulders now "Cat wake up."

I open my eyes and find myself face to face with him. It startles me a little, but I'm okay.

"Are you okay?" I ask him

"I should be asking you if _you're_ okay." He tells me "You were whimpering in your sleep."

"I was?"

"Yeah, you were." He nods "Were you having a nightmare?"

"No, I don't like so." I shake my head "I'm not even sure I was even really asleep. What time is it?"

"Almost 1:30, why?"

"We went to bed three hours ago and I don't even feel like I've slept at all." I sigh "I need some water..."

"Okay, hang on. I'll help you."

I sit up and throw the sheets off my body as Robbie stands up and turns on the lamp on my bedside table. He extends his hands to me and I take them, he helps me to my feet. I stumble a bit and fall into him. I hear him gasp.

"What?" I ask "Is everything okay?"

It's then that I feel something wet sliding down my leg. Confused, I look down and see that my legs and pajama shorts are stained with blood. I turn and see that the bedsheets are too.

"Robbie?" I whimper, my breathing rate increasing rapidly

"Shhhh, don't freak out." He tells me

"We've gotta go to the hospital." I exclaim "Robbie! We have to go right now!"

"I know." He nods, wrapping an arm around my waist to support me as I walk "You know what? Screw it!"

He picks me up bridal style and carries me out of the bedroom, slips on his shoes, grabs the car keys, and we leave.

* * *

"This is bad." I panic as I lay on the examination table, holding Robbie's hand while we wait for a nurse "This is really bad."

"Shhhh..." He rubs my arm "Don't freak out, okay? You could be making it worse..."

"This is all my fault!" I cry "I knew I wouldn't be able to have kids, I knew it was too good to be true!"

"Blood doesn't always necessarily mean a miscarriage..."

"Then what does it mean?!" I snap

"I.."

"Cat and Robbie?" A nurse enters our room "Hi. We're gonna take a look and see what's going on..."

She walks over to the ultrasound machine next to the table I'm laying on and switched it on, grabbing the gel from a cabinet underneath.

"Bleeding doesn't always mean a miscarriage, right?" Robbie clarifies

"Not always..." She sighs "Roll your shirt up please?"

I roll my shirt up to my sports bra as she grabs the wand and spreads gel across the head.

It's cold when it touches my skin. I've only ever done this once before, so I don't know what the nurse is looking for. However, when the low, familiar purring sound of the heartbeats fills the room again, I feel a huge wave of relief rush over me. They're not as loud as they usually are, but they're there.

"Thank god." I whisper

"You said you were having twins, right?" The nurse checks my file

"Yeah." Robbie nods "Why?"

"I'll be right back." She tells us, standing up and walking out

"See?" Robbie squeezes my shoulder "We're good. If their hearts are still beating, then they're still in there. We're okay. We're all okay."

The nurse returns a few minutes later with a doctor I don't recognize. Then again, it's almost three in the morning so he's probably just the doctor on call.

"Mr. and Mrs. Shapiro? Hi. I'm Doctor Peirce." He introduces himself "I'm just going to check up on the babies and make sure everything is okay."

"Okay." I nod

He takes the wand and presses it to my stomach again, moving it around. The sound of the heartbeats returns again and it's soothing to hear.

"Looks like you're right..." Doctor Peirce tells the nurse, shaking his head

"Is everything okay?" Robbie asks "What's wrong?"

"I'm so sorry..." He says sympathetically

"No." I shake my head "I can hear the heartbeat! They're in there! Nothing bad happened!"

"Cat..." Robbie sighs "Let him talk."

"Yes you can hear the heartbeat." He tells us "But that's all there is...just _one_ heartbeat. I'm so sorry, you've lost Baby B..."

"No..." I shake my head "No... no no no no no no no! This is all my fault!"

Robbie wraps an arm around my shoulders and pulls me into a hug, burying his face in my neck.

"This is all my fault..." I repeat

"You still have..." The doctor says "You still have Baby A. It's heartbeat is strong, and everything looks healthy, just like it should. I know that probably doesn't make this hurt any less...but I just want you to know you didn't lose everything"

"Thank you..." Robbie tells him "Would you...would you mind giving my wife and I a minute? We need it..."

"Of course." He nods, then he and the nurse exit the room

The tears that had been slowly streaming down my face turn now into violent, ugly sobs as Robbie helps me sit up and swing my legs over the side of the table. I wrap my arms around my neck and cry into his shoulder. I feel tears staining the back of my neck, so I can only assume that he's crying too.

I try many times to open my mouth and say something to him, but each time I only end up crying harder and harder...

"Shhh...I know." He tries to comfort me "I know...I know."


	10. Chapter 10

_Robbie's POV_

Cat and I both call in sick to work the next day. Cat wanted me to go in, she insisted that she'd be fine by herself, but I just couldn't bring myself to leave her alone all day. I made sure to turn off our alarms and let her sleep as late as possible.

I'm happy _she_ was able to fall back to sleep once we got home around four a.m., but I couldn't. There were a million thoughts running through my mind, so I just laid and watched Cat sleep. Normally, she has a very peaceful expression on her face when she's asleep, but instead she looked stressed. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she was grinding her teeth, the way she only does when she has a nightmare.

When I still hadn't fallen asleep at 6:30, I decided to get up and go for a run, just to clear my head. I woke Arlo up when I got up to get dressed, so I took him with me. Even that early, our neighborhood is already awake and busy, people on their way to work, the café a few blocks down already open for breakfast...I don't run in the morning often, so I usually only see it like this when Cat and I are playing the part of commuters.

It absolutely tears me apart inside to know that we lost Baby B, I can only imagine how Cat is feeling. She's been through enough pain in the past eight months to last her a lifetime, she doesn't need any more. But then again, I guess life is never really fair to anybody.

When I get back to the apartment, Cat is still fast asleep. Not wanting to wake her, I unhook Arlo's leash and jump in the shower for a few minutes. I return to the bedroom to find him curled up under Cat's arm.

"Keepin' Mom company?" I ask him as I step into a pair of athletic shorts.

He turns his head to look at me for a few seconds, then rests it down again.

"Where did you go?" Cat whispers, eyes still closed

"For a run..." I tell her "Are you awake?"

It's not unlike her to talk in her sleep, especially when she falls asleep upset.

"Yeah..." She says, opening her eyes a little "The dog woke me up."

"Arlo!"

"It's okay, it's fine." She assures me "I wasn't really getting _good_ sleep anyways..."

"I'm sorry." I pull a t-shirt over my head and crawl into bed next to her

She rolls over to face me, looking up at me with a sad expression on her face.

"Mornin'." She sighs

"Mornin'." I brush a lock of hair out of her face "How ya doin'?"

"Awful..." She admits, I can see the tears forming in her eyes "Robbie, I loved that baby!"

She begins to sob and that awful torn up feeling I had before returns to my chest and the pit of my stomach.

I hate seeing Cat upset.

I move closer to her and wrap my arms around her, pulling her as close to me as possible. She buries her head in my chest and continues to cry. I'm not really sure how to comfort her, I'll never experience any kind of pain even close to what she's feeling right now, I wish there was some way I could make it better, but I really can't. At least not right now. So I just rub her back and let her cry.

"This is all my fault..." She murmurs "I had the most basic job ever, all I had to do was protect them, and I couldn't even do that!"

"Cat the doctor said that you did everything right, remember?" I remind her "It wasn't anybody's fault it just...it happened. You didn't do _anything_ wrong."

"Then why did this happen?"

"Cat I don-"

"We announced it to early..." She sighs "We told everyone we were having twins! Now we have to tell them all we lost one! I don't know if I can put myself through that!"

"Not necessarily." I tell her "And the people we do need to tell, like our parents, and Beck and Jade and Tori and Andre...I can tell them. I know it's extremely painful for you, I can tell them. When the time is right, I think we need to take a little time for ourselves right now though..."

"Agreed..."

"And I know that reminding you that we still _have_ Baby A probably won't make things any easier on you but...we still have Baby A. We're still going to have a baby sometime this summer. We didn't lose _everything_."

"Yeah." She sniffles and rolls away from me, onto her back, resting a hand on her tiny baby bump "We still have _you,_ little one. And I promise that we love you more than anything in the whole wide world and we're always going to protect you, no matter what."

"I love you." I tell her, wiping the tears off her cheeks "You know that, right?"

"Yeah." She sniffs, staring up at the ceiling "I know."

"I love you too, baby..." I whisper to her abdomen "I always will."

Arlo, who had been laying on the other side of Cat, gets up and walks across the bed, laying down inbetween the two of us.

"Don't worry, Arlo." Cat assures him, scratching behind his ears "We didn't forget about you, we love you too."


	11. Chapter 11

_Robbie's POV_

"That can happen?" Beck looks astonished "You can lose one baby and not the other?"

"Yeah..." I sigh "And apparently it's not actually all that rare."

"Man, that sucks dude." Andre clasps his hand on my shoulder "How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay..." I admit "You're right, it really does suck...I just...I dunno..."

"How's Cat taking it?" Beck asks

"She wouldn't get out of bed for three days..." I tell him "Luckily part of that was the weekend, so she only had to use two of her sick days...but she was absolutely devastated."

"Well that's to be expected...she lost a child."

"I know." I nod "And most of the pain I feel is just from knowing I can't do anything to make it better."

"It'll get better with time, man." Andre assures me "She'll be okay."

* * *

 _Cat's POV_

"Stop looking at me like I'm wounded." I sigh "Please, it really doesn't help me any..."

"Sorry..." Jade apologizes

"Do you want to talk about it?" Tori asks

"Why would you ask that?" Jade exclaims "You really think that will make things any better?"

"I know that sometimes talking about things can help make them not seem so bad!" Tori defends herself "God, I was just trying to help!"

"It's fine." I assure them "Really, it was a really rough couple of days after it first happened, but I'm starting to come to terms with it...that we're only having one baby now..."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Jade asks "Like at all?"

"Nah..." I shake my head "I mean, there's nothing anybody can really do, you know? It happened, and it hurts like hell, and it's probably going to feel like that for a while...but there's nothing anyone can actually do about it."

"Well...if there's anything you need, anything at all...just let us know."

"Thanks guys." I smile "That means a lot. And just so you know, I'm extremely thankful to have you both."

"Don't mention it." Tori smirks "So, how's the other little goober holdin' up in there?"

"They're perfectly healthy." I tell them "At least, that's what the doctor told us. Strong heartbeat, everything developing just like it should. They'll always be a twin at heart though."

"Of course." Jade nods "When will you know if it's a boy or a girl?"

"Not until March..." I sigh "I wish we could know now, but it's too soon to tell..."

"What do you think it is?"

"Well, Robbie and I were both convinced the babies were a boy and a girl..." I rest a hand on my small baby bump, you wouldn't even be able to tell it was there if I didn't say something "But I have a very strong feeling that this one is a boy. Every nightmare I have, it's a boy."

"Do you want it to be a boy?"

"At this point, I don't care." I admit "I really can't afford to be picky. I just want a baby that is happy and healthy. Nothing else really matters to me anymore."

* * *

I'm laying in bed, reading one of our many baby books that have seem to collected everywhere around the apartment. On both of our nightstands, the coffee table in the living room, the kitchen counter, even the bathroom. Robbie comes in and crawls into bed next to me. I turn and lean against him and he wraps both his arms around my waist. Arlo, who had been laying on the floor on my side of the bed, hops up and makes himself more than comfortable a our feet.

"Anything hurt?" Robbie asks

"Besides my heart?" I say flatly, turning a page in the book

"That's not what I meant..."

"I know." I sigh "I'm just still stuck on the thought of what could've been, you know?"

"Yeah, I know." He rests his head on my shoulder "I'm sorry."

"S'not your fault."

"I know. It's not yours either."

"Yeah, I know."

"Whatcha readin' about?"

"The baby..."

"No shit." He laughs "What about the baby?"

"It's the size of a peapod..." I tell him "And it weighs just barely an ounce, or at least it should. I'll start my second trimester in a few weeks and hopefully then I won't feel as sick all the time."

"But you haven't been feeling all that sick though...have you?"

"Just because I don't tell you I feel sick doesn't mean I don't." I sigh

"How often to you feel sick?" He asks

"Usually right away in the morning and then again right before dinner."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because you freak out?"

"I don't freak out!" He exclaims

"Then lower your voice please." I say calmly

"Sorry...I just don't like it when your miserable."

"I don't either." I admit "But it's part of pregnancy, and hopefully I won't have to deal with is much longer. I promise, if I start feeling to the point where it's really terrible, I'll tell you, okay?"

"Okay." He smirks and kisses my cheek "I love you."

"I love you too."


	12. Chapter 12

_Cat's POV_

"You got it?"

"Yeah, I got it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! Can we just get this over with, please?!"

"Alright, let's go."

"Wait! I'm not ready!"

I hear something in the guest bedroom slip and fall to the floor with a loud bang.

"ANDRE!" Robbie exclaims

"Please don't break anything!" I call to them both from my place on the couch in the living room

"We won't!" Robbie calls back

"I'm serious, Robbie!"

He and Andre are currently in the process of disassembling the bedframe of the bed that had been in the spare room, then they're going to move it down to our storage unit in the basement. I think his hope was that if we start getting more and more prepared for the baby we have coming, it will help take my mind off the one we lost. It's only partially working.

"So you clean that room _every_ Sunday?" Tori asks

"We try to." I nod

She's sitting on the opposite side of the couch, flipping through the Babies R Us ad, Arlo lays stretched out in between us.

"How much stuff could possibly be in there?" She laughs

"You'd be surprised." I admit "We end up throwing most of it away or donating it. The people at Goodwill _love_ us."

"I bet."

I flip through my own stack of baby ads and feel a slight pang of guilt when my eyes land on a double stroller. There's a mom and two twin girls posing with it. I toss it onto the coffee table and grab my copy of What To Expect When You're Expecting instead.

"So you haven't bought anything yet?" Tori asks

"Nope." I wince, trying to prop my feet up on the table in front of me

"Woah." Her eyes go wide "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." I assure her "Yeah, I'm fine. This is what happens every time I try this. I'm still recovering from the accident, remember?"

"Oh...right..." She nods "I forgot about that...are you still going to physical therapy?"

"Yeah. Once or twice a week, depending on the week." I tell her "It's gotten more difficult to fit into my schedule with everything that's going on."

"Well is the recovery at least getting easier?"

"Sort of." I shrug "I mean, the little one here makes it a little more difficult on my body, but it'll be worth it. At least I hope it will be."

"It will be." She smiles "I know it will."

"Robbie! Oh my god!" Andre exclaims

"Boys!" I yell "Please! You're making me nervous!"

"Sorry!"

"What are we going to do with them?" I chuckle, shaking my head "They're idiots."

"But for some reason we love them."

* * *

"Hey Cat?" Robbie calls to me

I'm sitting outside on our balcony, Arlo at my feet, and he's inside playing on his PearPad.

"Yes?"

"Did you know babies in the womb can taste the food their mothers eat?" He asks

"Really?" I stand up slowly and begin to walk back inside "C'mon Arlo."

My abs weren't that strong to begin with, add pregnancy onto that and it almost feels like I'm going backwards...

"Yeah!" Robbie tells me as Arlo and I enter the apartment "Really strong flavors can pass through the amniotic fluid in the womb."

"Like?"

"Like garlic and stuff like that."

"Hm." I shrug, moving towards the bathroom "Well I guess you learn something new everyday."

"This website is full of weird pregnancy facts." He tells me

"Oh it's from the internet." I chuckle "Then it _must_ be true."

"Hey! It's pretty interesting stuff!" He insists "For example, did you know that by week 20 of you're pregnancy your body will have about 50% more blood in it than you did before you were pregnant?'

"Robbie." I laugh "Get off that website."

"Come on, just one more!"

"Fine." I sigh, sitting down on the couch next to him "One more."

"From the second trimester on, babies pee in the womb. Then they drink it, and the pee it out again and so on and so forth. In fact, most of their amniotic fluid is just sterile urine."

"Ew." I laugh "That's so gross."

"It really is." Robbie agrees as Arlo hops up into his lap "Hey bud."

"Do you think he'll get along with the baby?" I ask, petting the dog's head

"He should." Robbie shrugs "When I got him from the shelter, the lady told me he came from a family that had two young kids. I don't know how young 'young' is, but they had to be babies at some point, right?"

"Right." I agree "Are you excited Arlo? I'm gonna have a baby! You'll have a brother or sister."

"I think he's mostly excited because there's more space in the spare room for him to play for the time being." Robbie chuckles

"Typical Arlo." I smirk "Always up to have a good time, aren't ya?"

"So what were you and Tori doing while Andre and I were disassembling the bed from hell?"

"We were looking through baby ads for a while..." I tell him "I gave up eventually and started reading though."

"Find any good deals?'

"I don't want to even think about buying anything until we know the gender." I sigh

"Well, you can never be too prepared."

"You can be even more prepared if you know the gender."

"Touché." He chuckles "Still deadest it's a boy?"

"Yes." I smirk "I have a gut feeling."

"Well that could be indigestion." He shrugs "The book I was reading last night says that's really common in pregnant women."

"You're unbelievable." I roll my eyes "No I just...I think it's a boy."

"Because you have nightmares about having a son and not being able to take care of him because of the accident." He reminds me "Cat, you can't trust that."

"It's not _just_ that!" I insist "Okay, that's most of it. But the rest of it is my Mommy's intuition."

"Mommy's intuition?"

"Yeah, Mom's can just _tell_ certain things, you know?"

"Like what?"

"Like the gender of their babies." I tell them "Or that the dog really needs to pee because their husband hasn't taken him out since this morning."

"Point taken." He chuckles "Come on, Arlo."


	13. Chapter 13

_Cat's POV_

"John accidentally hit an extra zero on the copy machine today and ended up making two hundred copies of the monthly report for the meeting today instead of twenty." Robbie tells me as we step off the elevator of our apartment complex, onto our floor "He didn't even realize anything out of the ordinary was happening until around page eighty."

"Sounds like John." I chuckle, leaning my head against his shoulder as we walk down the hallway

"You okay?" He asks

"Yeah..." I sigh "I'm just tired. I don't know why."

"Probably because you're pregnant." He laughs, taking out his keys and unlocking the door

"Well yeah I know that but all the books say that once I enter the second trimester, I should start getting my energy back. I'm eleven weeks!"

"Second trimester starts at thirteen weeks." He smiles, opening the door and walking inside "You've still got two more weeks of being tired."

I groan and follow him in. Arlo perks up and jumps off the couch, running over to me. He nuzzles his head against my legs, since he knows better than to jump up on me, I lean down and scratch him behind his ears.

"Hey bud." I smiles "Did you take care of things while we were gone? Hm?"

The dog looks up at me reassuringly, then wanders into the kitchen to find Robbie.

"Yeah yeah." I hear him say "I know, you need to go out, just give me a few minutes to figure out dinner."

"I can start dinner." I tell him

"I don't want you standing in front of a hot stove, Cat."

"Oh my god." I laugh "Robbie, I'm more than capable of filling a pot up with water and putting it on the stove."

"Just let me take care of you." He reenters the room, taking off his tie and handing it to me "I actually enjoy it, you know."

"I know." I blush "I enjoy it too."

"Good. Now go relax and get changed. We'll be back soon." He kisses my forehead, then reaches to get Arlo's leash off the hook on the wall "C'mon bud.

"Be careful!" I remind him as they both walk out the door

"We will be, don't worry."

They leave and I turn and make my way into our bedroom to change. I'm more than relieved when I swap out my skirt for a pair of cloth shorts, and my blouse for a cotton t-shirt. I've only gained maybe four pounds my entire pregnancy so far, but it's enough to make some clothes just plain uncomfortable. Like a majority of my work clothes, I'll probably have to go maternity shopping soon. At this point, I prefer elastic to buttons and zippers.

I roll up my shirt a bit and turn towards the mirror attached to the dresser. There's a small bump, a _very_ small one. You'd only know it was there if I told you and you looked very closely, but I know it's there.

"You're a tiny little thing, aren't you?" I whisper, looking down "Don't worry, little one. I'll take care of you. I promise."

* * *

"Should we save this or just throw it out?" Robbie asks, gesturing towards the bit of pasta still left in the pot

"Save it." I shrug "One of us can take it for lunch."

I move to get a Tupperware container out of one of the cabinets while he continues washing dishes.

"You fed Arlo, right?"

"Yeah." Robbie laughs "You watched me scoop the food into his bowl."

"Right. Sorry." I apologize "Baby brain."

"Nah. Don't be spry." He wipes his hands on a towel and wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him "It's fine."

I'm caught a little off balance and fall into him, resting my head against his chest, giggling.

"What?" He asks

"That was fun." I tell him

"I'm glad." He kisses the top of my head "Do you know where the dog went? Usually he's wherever you are."

"I'll go find him." I say "Maybe the three of us can watch a movie together or something?"

"Sure." He grins "I'd like that. Just give me a few minutes to finish up in here and then we can pick one out On Demand or something."

"Kay." I smile and turn to leave the kitchen

I walk out into the main part of the apartment.

"Arlo?" I call "Where ya at buddy?"

The dog appears, sticking his head out of the door of the spare bedroom, then returning back inside. I smile, shaking my head and follow him.

"Whatcha doin' in here bud?" I ask, leaning against the doorframe "You think this is _your_ room or somethin'?"

He looks up at me, then picks up his chew toy and lays down.

"Alright, I see how it is." I chuckle "Just wait until we get the baby gates, then we'll see if you can get in here."

I don't blame him, aside from the few boxes that still sit in the corner, the room is almost entirely empty. Since he doesn't really have access to a yard, it's a nice open space for him to play in, for the time being at least.

I can't wait to paint this room, I can't wait to move furniture in and pick out a nursery theme. I can't wait to bring my son or daughter in here for the first time and rock them in a rocking chair, then lay them down in their crib and kiss them goodnight.

"Hey." Robbie appears behind me "Ready?"

"This room will look so different a few months from now..." I tell him, glancing around the open space

"I know." He smiles "I can't wait."

"For some reason, I can't picture just _one_ crib in here." I sigh, shaking my head "Whenever I try to visualize it, I always see two, one against each wall."

"Cat I-"

"Never mind." I turn and leave the doorway "Let's pick a movie."


	14. Chapter 14

_Cat's POV_

"Oh my god..." I groan, turning on the faucet and washing my vomit down the drain

"You okay?" Robbie frowns, rubbing my back

"Yeah..." I sigh "Let's just please _not_ have green beans again for a very _very_ long time."

"Fair enough." He chuckles "The morning sickness that's actually anytime sickness is supposed to be subsiding soon though isn't it?"

"It's supposed to be." I roll my eyes, walking out of the kitchen and into the bathroom "Knowing me, I'll be one of the lucky ones who has it through her entire pregnancy."

"Aw come on, I doubt that." He teases, following me "What are you doing?"

"Brushing my teeth." I tell him "Puke doesn't exactly have the best after taste."

"Gross."

"You asked." I shrug

"You sure you're okay?" He asks, walking over to me and wrapping me up in his arms

"Yeah." I whisper, resting my head against his chest "It's just...yeah..."

"You wanna go lay down?"

"It's only 8:30."

"We don't have to go to sleep, necessarily." He rests his chin on the top of my head "We can just lay down."

"Okay." I agree

I'm so tired I really don't have energy to do anything else.

"C'mon."

I finish brushing my teeth and put my toothbrush away, then Robbie leads me out of the bathroom and into our bedroom.

"Arlo!" Robbie calls out into the main part of the apartment

The dog comes running into the room and hops onto the bed next to me as I crawl under one of the blankets. He cuddles up next to me and Robbie lays down on his side of the bed.

"I feel like I could sleep for three days." I admit

"Then go to sleep." Robbie chuckles, picking his parenting book up off of his nightstand

"But then I'll throw my sleep schedule off and that won't really be any better."

"Then read your baby book."

"I'm too tired."

"You're impossible." HE smiles, shaking his head

"I'm not impossible, I'm pregnant." I correct him

"Right." He laughs "Sorry."

"Whatever." I roll my eyes "Can you just talk to me and keep me awake?"

"Sure." He shrugs "How was work today?"

"No, I don't wanna talk about work!" I groan "Work is so boring! I'll I do is sort files and take phone calls!"

"Don't you process paperwork too?"

"Mhm." I roll my eyes "It's fabulous."

"It's a living."

"For now." I sigh "Can we talk about something else?"

"Yeah, um..." He hesitates "Let's talk about the baby."

"I like talking about the baby." I smile, placing one hand on my stomach and scratching Arlo's head with the other

"I know you do." Robbie grins "So...what do you want to name him or her?"

"Isn't it a little early for that?"

"It's never too early." He tells me "And haven't you had our kids named since we started dating?"

"Since our one year." I correct him "And I guess so, but I never took it one hundred percent serious."

"Well what names do you like?"

"Nathaniel has always been one of my favorite names." I admit "I like William too though, and Alexander."

"Any girls names?"

"We don't need girl's names." I tell him "It's a boy. I'm sure of it."

"Cat..."

"Robbie..." I mimic him "Come on, what names do you like?"

"I like Ethan." He shrugs "And James and Isaac...but based on the face you're making, I'm assuming you don't."

"No it's not that I don't like them, they just seem more like middle names to me, you know?" I sigh "What if we named him after you?"

"I don't know..." He shakes his head

"Oh come on." I tease him "How cute would it be to have little Robert Cameron Junior?"

"I wouldn't be able to discipline him ever! It would be like I'm yelling at myself." He tells me "And who said it's one hundred percent going to be a boy?"

"Um..." I pause "I did? I can just _feel_ it, Robbie. He's a boy."

"So you don't have any girls names picked out?" He raises an eyebrow at me "At all?"

"Well...yeah I do but..."

"Let's hear them!" He insists

"I like Georgia..." I shrugs "At least I used to, I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it anymore. But I like Makayla too, and Leah, and Emma-"

"Hasn't Emma been, like, one of the most popular names the past few years?"

"Yeah. So?"

"So, she could have like five other Emma's in her class at school!"

"Well fine then." I laugh "What girl's names do you like?"

"Well Georgia isn't bad." He shrugs "But I like Elena, we could call her Ellie. Or Savannah."

"You like Savannah and Georgia?" I laugh

"Hey, those sound pretty good together!"

"Maybe because Savannah is a city in the state of Georgia?" I roll my eyes

"Oh yeah! That's right!"

"Oh my god..." I sigh "What about Ava? Do you like Ava?"

"It's okay." He shrugs "Why? You got an idea?"

"Ava Harper?" I suggest

"It's a possibility."

"Doesn't matter anyway." I tell him "The baby is a boy."

"You don't know that, Cat." He sighs

"But I do."

"Okay, dearest." He laughs "Whatever you say."

"Smart man." I smirk


	15. Chapter 15

_Cat's POV_

"Bye, Cat. See you tomorrow." One of the firm's lawyers waves as I open the door to the office and walk out

"Bye." I smile

I walk down the hallway and towards the elevator, pushing the button and waiting for the car to arrive. When it does, I ride down to the building's main floor, where Robbie is waiting for me.

"Hello, beautiful." He grins, walking over to me and wrapping me up in a hug "Ready to go?"

"Yup." I tell him "Are you?"

"Yup." He takes my hand "Let's go."

He opens the door for me and we step out onto the street, heading towards the parking garage where Robbie stores his car while we're at work. It's only about a block away from my building, not too bad of a hike, but still a reasonable amount of work for my legs.

"So how was work today?" He asks

"As good as it could've been." I shrug "Not that exciting, but not completely terrible. What about you?"

"Well," He sighs "I just found out I have to drive down to San Francisco this weekend. For business."

"You're going to leave me here by myself?" I exclaim "Robbie!"

"Hang on!" He laughs "If you let me finish, I was going to say you should come with me! We could make a weekend trip out of it. Leave Friday night, I'll go to my meetings on Saturday, we can get dinner, hang out for a while on Sunday, maybe see the bay. Then we'll drive back Sunday afternoon."

"Are you kidding?" I stop walking

"Um..." He hesitates "No? I thought it'd be fun!"

"I can barely make it through the fifteen minute drive to work without having a panic attack." I remind him "And you want me to make a five hour drive to San Francisco at almost nighttime? No, Robbie! I can't do that! I'm not-"

"Hey hey hey!" He grabs my shoulders and turns me towards him "It's okay, you don't have to come, it's okay. But I _have_ to go."

"Well I don't want to stay by myself." I tell him

"Maybe you could stay with one of our friends then. Or maybe your parents. They're always asking us to visit more often."

"Robbie."

"Or maybe we could take the train down." He suggests "Would you be comfortable on the train?"

"What are the odds of another train coming at us head on and pushing us onto the opposite track?" I ask

"None." He sighs

"Okay." I gulp "Okay, I'll come with you if we can take the train."

* * *

"It's beautiful." I smile, looking out at the sun setting over the bay from the balcony of our hotel room "So much different from Los Angeles."

"Nothing is as beautiful as you." Robbie smiles, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist

"That couldn't have been more cliché if you tired, sir." I giggle

"But it's true." He kisses my temple "And just think, one day soon, we'll have a beautiful baby too."

"Yeah." I sigh "We will..."

"Everything okay?"

"I'm scared." I admit

"About what?" Robbie asks "About having a baby? You'll be a great mom."

"What if I don't make it that far, Robbie?" I turn and look at him "I mean, I couldn't carry one of them all the way through the first trimester. What if this one doesn't make it?"

"Cat..."

"I'm serious, Robbie." I shake my head, fighting tears "I was supposed to protect them for nine months until they were ready to come out into the world and I couldn't even do that! I failed them!"

"Baby, you didn't fail them."

"Well I failed one of them." I sigh, leaning against the railing "And that's going to bother me for the rest of my life."

"Cat you didn't fail that baby." He insists

"My body couldn't handle two! So it got rid of one and I didn't even have any control over it!"

"Exactly!" He exclaims "You didn't have any control over it. Neither did I, neither did the doctors, okay? Nobody had any control, it wasn't anybody's fault."

Tears fill my eyes and I just shake my head, an emotional mess.

"Hey." He pulls me into a hug "You're okay, it's gonna be alright."

Sometimes that's all you need to hear.

"I'm sorry." I apologize "I'm an emotional mess."

"That's not your fault either." He chuckles, kissing the top of my head "And hey. You don't have any reason to be scared, okay? Everything is going to be fine."

"Promise?"

"I promise." He nods

"Okay."

"And Cat..." He cups my face in his hands "I know you're scared. It's okay to be scared. I'm scared too. But we've been through so much in the past year, we can handle anything."

"You really think so?"

"I know so." He smiles and presses a kiss to my lips "I don't want you to be worried. If you get scared for even a second, I want you to let me know right away so we can talk about it. Deal?"

"Deal." I smile

"I've got your back." He grins "For better or worse, remember ?"

"Yeah." I nod "I remember. I've got your back too."

"I love you, Caterina Shapiro."

"I love you too."


	16. Chapter 16

_Robbie's POV_

"Arlo!" I exclaim "C'mere buddy!"

My dog turns his head, looks at me briefly, then turns back and replaces his head on Cat's lap.

"What the hell, Arlo?" I sigh, walking over and sitting on the couch

"He's pissed at you for sending him to Beck and Jade's for the weekend." Cat smirks, not taking her eyes off the TV and petting the dog's head

"He likes Beck and Jade!" I insist

"But you _left_ him there." She reminds me

"You were in San Francisco with me too!"

"But I'm not the one who dropped him off."

"I came back for you!" I say to the dog "It was only for two days."

"Remember, you have to multiply everything times seven for him." Cat laughs "He feels like you left him for two weeks."

"Come on, Arlo." I pout

"Give him like a day, he'll be over it." Cat chuckles "I bet he's just happy to be home. Aren't you bud?"

"I'm happy to be home too." I admit "Vacations are nice, but there's nothing like your own bed."

"Preach." Cat sighs "You don't think he'll get jealous, do you? When the baby comes?"

"We have a while before we start worrying about that, don't we?" I raise an eyebrow at her

"Five and a half months." She reminds me

"That's a long time!"

"It's really not, Robbie." She sighs "Whatever. Hopefully he'll be fine."

"He will be. He's a good dog." I assure her "So...someone's birthday is next week."

"I wonder who." She smirks

"So what do you wanna do?" I ask, poking her shoulder "It's not everyday someone turns 23."

"Please." She scoffs "Birthday's stop being important after 21, everyone knows that."

"Birthdays are always important!" I insist "Especially because we weren't sure if you were going to-"

"Make it to 23?" She rolls her eyes "I'm trying to move on from that, Robbie."

"Well so am I." I shrug "But we _should_ celebrate somehow."

"My birthday is Valentine's Day, everything is already booked." She sighs

"Well then let me cook you dinner here." I suggest

"You do that every night."

"I'll think of something." I wink "And you're gonna love it."

"Okay, Robbie." She laughs

* * *

"Robbie." Cat groans "Where are we going? My legs hurt!"

I'm practically dragging her along, and I feel bad. But we're almost to Maestro's, then she can sit down.

"Are we going to Maestro's?" She asks

"No." I lie

"Robbie, there's literally nothing else to do down here."

"Okay so maybe we're going to Maestro's." I laugh

"How'd you get reservations?" She asks "Usually you have to call like three months in advance."

"It's a good thing your husband thinks in advance then, isn't it?" I smile, wrapping my arms around her waist and kissing her before we go inside

"Hello." The man in front greets us "Do you have a reservation?"

"Yeah." I nod "It's under Shapiro, it should be for six."

"Six?" Cat looks confused

"Right this way." He motions for us to follow him

"Who else is here?" Cat asks

"Who do you think?" I laugh as the waiter leads us to a table near the back of the restaurant where beck, Jade, Tori and Andre are already seated

There's a chorus of 'Hey's and 'Happy Birthday's as Cat and I sit down at the table.

"Robbie." Cat whispers to me, turning her head so no one can read her lips "How much did this cost?"

"Doesn't matter." I kiss her temple "Don't worry about it."

"This place is expensive!" She exclaims "We're going to have to start baby shopping soon, Robbie."

"Don't worry about it." I repeat "It's your birthday, let me spoil you."

"But-"

"It's not going to dent our finances." I assure her "Don't worry, okay?"

"Kay..." She sighs "Thanks for coming, guys."

"We wouldn't miss your birthday." Tori grins "How are you, how are you feeling?"

"Well, the morning sickness has finally started to subside." Cat tells her "Thank god. And it's been easier for me to sleep lately, which I'm extremely thankful for..."

"So am I." I laugh "You're not much fun when you're crabby."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Cat snaps

"Nothing I-"

"You've gotta have a lot of nerve saying that to the woman carrying your child, Shapiro." She narrows her eyes at me

"It was a joke, Cat." I assure her "I love you and the baby so _so_ much, you know that."

"I know." She sighs

"Mood swings are still a thing I see." Andre chuckles quietly to me

"You have no idea." I sigh

"Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet?" Jade asks

"We would've told you if we did." Cat laughs "We find out the first week of March. I'm pretty sure it's a boy though."

"That's not that far away." Tori smiles

"I know." Cat grins "I'm excited."

"So am I." I agree, wrapping an arm around my wife "But I'm going to need you two on hand to help me paint the nursery."

"Of course." Beck nods

"We got your back, man." Andre agrees

"Yay." Cat smiles

* * *

"Did you have a good birthday?" I ask Cat later that night as we're laying in bed

"Mhm..." She answers me, half asleep

"Good." I kiss the top of her head "I'm glad."

"Thanks for dinner." She whispers "And the flowers, and the bracelet."

"You're welcome." I smile

"Robbie?"

"Yeah?"

"I wasn't sure I was gonna make it to my 23rd birthday either..." She admits "But I'm happy I did."

"I'm happy you did too, I don't know what I'd do without you." I tell her "I love you."

"I love..." She yawns "I love you too."

"Get some sleep birthday girl." I kiss her again "I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight."

Her 22nd birthday, I took her dancing at a club downtown. I looked like a total idiot, but she had so much fun. Who knew our lives would be so different a year later? Married and expecting a baby. Next year this time, we'll probably be falling into bed, exhausted from taking care of our little one.

The next year will be a crazy ride, but I'm so excited I'll have Cat with me every step of the way.


	17. Chapter 17

_Cat's POV_

"Do you think it's dark in there?" I ask, poking my baby bump with my index finger

I'm just now starting to where maternity clothes. The doctor says that the baby is notably on the tinier side, but that as long as everything is healthy, which it is, we don't have any reason to be worrying about it just yet.

"Well I doubt she has a lamp in there, if that's what you're asking." Robbie chuckles

"You're so _mean_ to me!" I gasp

"I'm only teasing you." He smiles, rolling his eyes "It's probably pretty dark, but I think her eyes are closed anyways."

"Hers?" I raise an eyebrow at him "You mean his."

"No I mean hers."

"Oh?" I giggle

"Yeah." He nods "Wanna bet?"

"Gladly." I smirk, extending my hand to shake his "Loser folds the laundry for a week."

"Please." He scoffs "Laundry is _nothing,_ even if I lose."

"Well it has to be something _I_ can do sitting down." I remind him "Just in case."

"So are you admitting there's a possibility you can lose?"

"There's always the possibility." I shrug "But I doubt I'm going to lose."

"We'll see."

"Next week." I grin "I'm so excited! It's all becoming so real!"

"You say that a lot." He chuckles

"Because every day it becomes more and more real!" I smile "Hey, you know what we should do?"

"What should we do?"

"We should have a gender reveal party! Or at least a gender reveal cake!"

"A what?" He looks extremely confused

"A gender reveal cake!" I repeat "I see them on Pinterest all the time when I'm looking at nursery ideas."

"What's Pinterest?" He asks

"You're kidding right?'

"No."

"Oh my god." I sigh, shaking my head "Anyway, it's just like a regular cake but the frosting on the inside is either pink or blue. The nurse doesn't tell you the results, she just puts them in an envelope. You take the envelope to a bakery, they look, bake the cake. Then when you cut into it, if the filling is pink, you're having a girl. If it's blue, you're having a boy!"

"Isn't that a little..." He hesitates

"A little what?"

"I don't know..." He shrugs "Over the top?"

"Of course not!" I insist "It's not like we'd make it a _huge_ thing or anything like that. Just our parents, Beck and Jade, and Tori and Andre. Robbie this is our first baby!"

"I thought Arlo was our first baby?" He teases me

"Okay fine." I roll my eyes "This is our first _human_ baby. A baby we're _incredibly_ blessed and lucky to have. We should be allowed to get a little over the top if we want to."

"Would it make you happy?" He chuckles

"It would." I sing-song "Please, Robbie? Please, please, please, please?"

"Okay, fine." He smirks "If you wanna get a 'gender reveal cake', then we can."

"Yay!" I cheer "Thank you!'

"On one condition." He holds up one finger

"Which would be..."

"You've gotta give me a kiss."

"Oh alright." I smirk, rolling my eyes

I he lifts my legs off his lap and I sit up, scooting myself closer to him, and plant a kiss on his lips.

"Thank you, Mrs. Shapiro."

"You're welcome, Mr. Shapiro."

"I never get tired of doing that." Robbie grins "Do you?"

"No." I smile "Never."

"And just think, soon we'll have a little baby to add into the mix too."

"Well I guess technically we can just say 'Baby Shapiro'..." I shrug "Hey Robbie?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think this baby and the other baby were friends while they were still together?" I ask, resting a hand on my bump

"I'm sure they were..." He wraps an arm around my shoulders and pulls me into him

"Do you think this baby misses the other baby?" I lean my head on his shoulder "Do you think they even notice that it's gone?"

"I don't know..." He sighs "They might, they probably do. But we'll never really have a way of knowing."

"That sucks." I frown

"Yeah." He agrees "It does."

"If it's a girl...I want one of her names to be Rae." I tell him "So she can be our little Rae of sunshine in this dark and dingy world."

"It's not so bad..." He nudges me "I mean, plenty of good things have happened to us."

"Robbie. We both almost died, the man responsible will walk free in ten years, we lost a baby."

"But neither of us actually died." He reminds me "You had like, a two percent chance of ever walking again, and look at you now. We got married, we got a puppy, we're gonna have a beautiful baby in about four months or so..."

I take a deep breath and exhale slowly.

"But for what it's worth..." He says "I think Rae is a _very_ pretty name."

"Thanks." I whisper "So do I."

"Maybe Rae Evelyn." He suggests "Or Leah Rae."

"Leah was one of my names..." I smile

"Yeah, it was." He nods "It's a pretty one. I wouldn't mind having a daughter named Leah."

"Neither would I." I smile "But that doesn't matter because-"

"You're one hundred percent convinced it's a boy." He chuckles, shaking his head "That's my girl. She's got an opinion and she's stickin' to it."

"Damn straight I am." I laugh "Just you wait, you'll be folding the laundry soon enough."

"You think?"

"I know."


	18. Chapter 18

_Robbie's POV_

"This is _so_ exciting!" Cat grins from her seat next to me

I had picked her up from work and we went straight to the doctor's office, and are now sitting in the waiting room, waiting for a nurse to bring us back to an examination room. It's Cat's twenty week appointment, so we'll get to find out the sex of our baby today. Or at least get the results to bring to the bakery so they can make our gender reveal cake.

I still think it's a little over the top, and I'd much rather find out right away, rather than having to wait. But the pregnancy has been really hard on Cat, especially losing one of the babies, so if she's happy then I'm happy.

"You're sure you still want to do this whole gender reveal cake thing?" I clarify "You don't just want to find out tonight?"

"Robbieee!" She whines, leaning her head on my shoulder "It'll be fun, come on! Besides, we've waited five months already, what difference will another twenty-four hours or so make?"

"Okay." I smirk, wrapping an arm around her "I guess you're right."

"Shapiro?" A nurse calls

"That's us!" I say

I stand up and extend a hand to Cat, helping her to her feet, then wrapping my arm around her waist as we walk back to the examination room.

"The doctor will be with you in a minute or so." The nurse tells us

"Okay, thank you." Cat smiles as the nurse closes the door behind her "Robbie? Can you help me?"

"Of course!" I smile, picking her up bridal style and setting her down on the examination table "There you go."

"Thank you." She giggles, resting a hand on her abdomen "As if it wasn't already hard enough to use my legs normally, now I've got a little person in the way."

"You're halfway there." I remind her "At least, in theory you are."

"Yes but the baby is just gonna keep growing and-"

There's a knock on the door and Doctor Fletcher enters the room.

"Hi guys." She smiles "How are you?"

"As good as we can be." Cat sighs "You?"

"I'm well, thank you." She nods "Let's check on this baby, shall we? Have you been experiencing any pain? Specifically in your lower back?"

"Unfortunately." Cat frowns "But right now it's just an annoying pain, it isn't affecting my ability to do anything. At least not yet."

"That's something we need to keep an eye on for sure then." The doctor nods "Has your morning sickness gotten any better."

"Yes." Cat and I both say in unison, causing the doctor to laugh

"That's good." She chuckles "Let's take a look at this baby, shall we?"

"Alright." Cat grins

She rolls her shirt up while Doctor Fletcher turns on the sonogram machine and grabs the gel for the wand out of one of the cabinets.

"You're twenty weeks now." She tells us "So if you want, you can find out the gender."

"We want to find out." I tell her "But we were wondering if you could put the results in an envelope for us instead of just telling us so we can have a gender reveal cake made."

"Of course I can do that." She says "But I'll have to turn the screen away when it comes to that part of the sonogram."

"Fine." I sigh

"Robbie!" Cat laughs as the doctor places the wand on her stomach

"I'm just so anxious to know!" I exclaim

"All first time parents are." Doctor Fletcher laughs "Oh..."

"What?" I panic "Is something wrong?"

"No no." She assures us, I see Cat relax a little "The baby is still a little on the smaller side, it appears though. I don't think Cat is at fault either. You've been taking your prenatal vitamins, right? And eating healthy?"

"Yes!" Cat nods "Of course!"

"It could just be a tiny baby then." She tells us, turning the volume up so we can hear the heartbeat and turning the screen to face us "Here you go, here's your baby."

My heart skips a beat and I feel this warm sensation fill up my insides.

That's my child on the screen. The child that I _made_ with Cat, a child that will be fifty percent me and fifty percent her, not that I would mind if it were more like her though. Doctor Fletcher is right, it does look really tiny, but it looks so precious. Losing it's twin makes it even more so.

"Robbie, honey, look!" Cat squeals "That's _our_ baby!"

"Yeah." I grin, taking her hand in mine "That's our perfect little baby."

* * *

"Alright!" I grin, knife in hand, ready to cut into our gender reveal cake "Here we go! Drumroll please!"

My parents, Cat's, Beck, Jade, Andre, and Tori all begin to pound on the kitchen countertop. We're all wearing either blue or pink Mardi Gras bead necklaces, based on what gender we think the baby will be.

"Wait!" Cat shrieks "Where's Arlo?"

"I don't know." I shrug

"Well he should be here!" She exclaims "This effects him too!"

"Come on." Jade sighs "I'll go with you to look for him."

The two of them exit the kitchen, leaving the rest if us staring at the cake.

I'll give Cat props, it's actually pretty creative. The outside frosting is white with pink and blue polka dots covering the sides. The top says 'He or She? Cut Open to See!', the cake on the inside will be chocolate, per request of the hungry pregnant woman who was craving chocolate when she ordered it.

"Okay, we've got the dog!" Jade says, walking back into the kitchen with Arlo in her arms, followed by Cat "Slice that cake open!"

Cat walks over to stand at my side, grinning ear to ear as I make the first cut into the cake.

"It's gonna be blue." She whispers to me "You're gonna be folding laundry."

"We'll see." I smirk

I cut the cake completely in half, 50/50, revealing the chocolate cake inside, along with the frosting in the middle. It's blue.

"IT'S A BOY!" Cat announces "It's a boy, it's a boy, it's a boy! Oh, I told you Robbie! I told you!"

"You did." I chuckle "You absolutely did."

I lean down and plant a kiss on her lips as our parents and our friends all cheer.

In about four months or so, I'm going to have a son. I honestly wouldn't have cared either way, but I'm going to have a son. _We're_ going to have a son. I'll be able to teach him all the things my dad taught _me_ growing up, share all the same experiences with him.

"You happy?" I ask Cat

"So happy." She smiles


	19. Chapter 19

_Cat's POV_

 _I'm laying in bed, watching TV, Robbie and Arlo are nowhere in sight, so it's my only guess that they went for a walk._

 _A little boy toddles into the bedroom, he can't be more than two years old._

 _"Mama." He smiles_

 _"Hi there." I smile back at him_

 _This is my son. He looks like the perfect mixture of Robbie and I._

"Come play!" He laughs, turning and running out of the room

 _"Oh...um..." I hesitate, eying my wheelchair in the corner of the room "Just a second..."_

 _When did my wheelchair get here? I haven't needed it in months. I try to move my legs to stand up and follow the little boy, but I can't. They won't budge, I can't move._

 _There's a crash in the next room over and I hear him scream._

 _"MAMA!" He cries "HELP!"_

 _"Just a second baby!" I exclaim, reaching out, trying to grab my chair_

 _I can't, it's too far away. With every second, my son's cries grow louder and more and more painful to listen to. I start to cry._

 _"MAMA!" He calls again_

 _"I'm trying, baby!" I yell "I'm trying!"_

 _I can't get to him, I can't help him. I'm stuck. My cry turns to sobs, matching the sound my son is making in the next room._

 _"MAMA HELP!"_

"NO!" I scream, sitting straight up in bed, breathing heavily

Robbie jolts awake next to me and immediately turns on a light.

"What's wrong?" He exclaims "What's the matter?'

"Oh my god..." I fight tears, trying my hardest to catch my breath "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god."

"Is the baby okay?" Robbie asks

"Yeah." I choke, resting both hands on my bump "Yeah, he's okay. I just...I had a nightmare about him again."

"Cat." He sighs, wrapping me up in a hug "It's okay, it wasn't real."

"It felt really real." I shake my head "But I know it's not now. I'm okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." I nod "I'm sure."

In reality though, I'm really not. I can protect my son for as long as possible while he's still inside of me, but what happens after that? Will I be able to take care of him? Will I be able to protect him? What if I screw up and he hurts himself?

I love him so much already, I can't imagine what will happen to me if anything happens to him.

* * *

"I've been waiting close to five months for this!" I exclaim as I walk hand in hand with Robbie towards the Babies R Us Store "Baby shopping is so much more fun than regular shopping!"

"Is it now?" Robbie raises an eyebrow at me

"Uh uh!"

"How would you know?" He laughs, grabbing a cart "What babies have you ever had to shop for?"

"All baby stuff is ten times cuter because it's smaller." I tell him "Everybody knows that."

"Whatever you say." He laughs as we enter the store "So, what do you wanna get today?"

"Everything!"

"We can't buy _everything_ today." He chuckles

"Well then let's start with nursery stuff and go from there." I tell him "Bedding first. You have to design the nursery around the bedding."

"Not necessarily."

"Oh my god you are such a _guy_." I groan, leading him towards the bedding department

They have every color, pattern and design under the sun. It's almost overwhelming, but at least we'll have plenty to chose from.

"Which one?" I sigh "The only request I have is that we stay away from cars or anything of the sort."

"I think that's a reasonable request to honor." Robbie nods "Let's take a look and see what we can find, okay?"

"Okay."

We split up and begin to wander the isle.

I don't want anything _too_ generic, but I don't want anything too over the top either. Just something cute that will last him a few years until he's big enough to move out of his crib.

"Cat!" Robbie calls me over, pulling a package of bedding off the shelf "What do you think about this one?"

The label across the package reads 'Anchors Away', it's a three set piece with a quilt, a fitted sheet, and a crib skirt. The quilt various shades of light blue with a cartoon navy blue whale on it. He's smiling, and blowing different colored spurts of water out of his blowhole, either bright green with white polka dots, navy blue and white checkered, or white with thin bright green, navy blue, light blue and yellow pinstripes. The skirt is the pinstriped pattern with bright green edging. And the sheet is white with little whales spraying either bright green or bright blue water .

"Aw." I chuckle "It's cute."

"There aren't any cars." He points out "What do you think? Is it good enough for our little guy?"

"Well... _nothing_ will ever be good enough for him." I smile "But I think this bedding will work just fine."

"Great." Robbie takes the package and tosses it into the cart

Next comes the nursery furniture. We pick a light grey crib that will convert into a toddler bed, and then eventually a full sized bed when the time comes, so it will grow with him. There's a matching changing table that's the same color, and also has a few storage drawers underneath for his clothes, so we purchase that as well. We also get a white rocking chair with grey padding.

I can see it all coming together in my head and it makes me so excited.

The carseat we end up choosing is dark grey with white padding. It has light blue and chocolate brown diamond print and comes with a matching stroller that it can also attach to. In my opinion not a bad day.

A rather expensive day, but not a bad day.

Soon, our little boy will be out here in the world with us. And I'll get to hug him and cuddle him and tell him how much I love him, and how happy I am that he's here with me.

The fact that he'll have a pretty stylish room to come home too isn't bad either.


	20. Chapter 20

_Robbie's POV_

"Robbie?" Cat calls from the soon-to-be baby's room "Can you come here for a second?"

"Sure."

I get up off the couch and make the short trip into the spare bedroom. In the past week or so it's gone from completely empty, to full of boxes of furniture waiting to be assembled.

Cat is standing in the middle of the room, quilt from the crib bedding in one hand, paint swatches in the other.

"What's up, gorgeous?" I ask kissing her cheek and wrapping my arms around her waist.

I notice that as soon as she has me for support, she takes advantage, leaning back against me.

"Which one of these do you think matches the best?" She asks, holding up two paint cards with maybe five color options on each "The first one on this card, or on this card?"

Cat didn't want to buy any paint colors when we went to the hardware store this past weekend after baby shopping. Something about wanting to make sure everything matched correctly. Every night after dinner since then, she disappears to the baby's room, trying to plan out what furniture will go best where, and which color will match everything perfectly.

"Cat." I sigh "They look exactly the same..."

"They're no where close to the same!" She exclaims " _This_ is Slick Blue and _this_ is Blue Bauble! Slick Blue is _clearly_ darker!"

"You're right." I lie to her "What was I thinking?"

"I don't know." She sighs, moving the card with the supposed darker color on it into the same hand as the quilt "So which one do you think matches the blanket the best?"

How am I supposed to know? I see the exact same thing when I look at both cards. _Light. Blue._

"Oh I don't know." I shrug "Just pick whichever one you like the best."

"Robbie!" Cat groans, throwing her hands up in defeat "He's _our_ son! I want you to be involved in little things like this too! I know it seems stupid, but it's important to me! Come on, just pick one!"

"Well what about that one?" I point to the third color down on the lighter of the two cards

"Rainstorm?" She shrieks

"What? What's wrong with it?" I ask

"It's too dark!"

"It's almost the exact same color as the whale on his blanket!" I attempt to defend myself, even though I know it's pointless

"The navy blue is an _accent_ color!" She exclaims "His furniture is all grey, if we paint the room that color, it will just make the whole space seem that much darker because there aren't any windows!"

"I honestly don't think that Nicholas will care if-"

"Oh my god! His name is _not_ Nicholas!" Cat exclaims "I told you, I hate that name!"

Nicholas has become my top name choice since we found out we were having a son. However, Cat doesn't seem to like it too much. But how great does Nicholas Elliot Shapiro sound?

"Cat I was just-"

"I don't care! Robbie, I've _told_ you. I don't like-ahhh!" She winces and grabs her lower back

"Woah!" I rush over to her "What's wrong? Tell me what's wrong and I'll make it better."

"Nothing's wrong." She waves me off "It's nothing."

"That didn't look like nothing." I tell her "You grabbed your back and made a face like you were in pain."

"There's a lot of extra weight down there now that I'm not used to carrying." She explains "I just shifted my weight funny and my back wasn't used to it. I'm okay, really."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure."

She's lying. I can tell. I know her back is killing her, but she doesn't want to say anything because she's afraid the doctor will put her on bed rest. Then she won't be able to work so she can make money and we'll have more when the baby comes. I know her well enough to figure that out. And well enough to know she's a _terrible_ liar.

"Why don't you go lay down?" I suggest "Take the pressure off your back."

"Robbie, I told you I'm _fine_."

"Cat."

"Alright." She sighs "Are you gonna walk Arlo tonight?"

"I'm going to, yes." I nod "But I wanna make sure you're okay first."

"I just told you I'm okay." She rolls her eyes "Go walk the dog."

"I'm just trying to-"

"Help. Yeah. I know." She sighs "I'll be okay by myself for ten minutes, take the dog out before he pees all over the carpet. I'm really _not_ in the mood to clean that up tonight."

"Alright. Arlo! C'mon boy!" I call "Let's go for a walk!"

At the sound of his name, Arlo jumps up from his spot on the couch and comes running over to me. I take his leash off the hook on the wall and attach it to his collar, slip on my flip flops, grab my wallet and open the door.

"We'll be back soon!" I inform Cat "I love you!"

"I love you too." She says back, but she sounds slightly annoyed

I step out into the hallway and close the door behind Arlo, walking towards the elevator.

"Mommy is going to have my head on a platter." I tell Arlo, shaking my head "This pregnancy is making her an emotional pinball."

We ride down to the first floor, and walk out through the parking lot, onto the sidewalk.

The apartment complex is located in a nice little neighborhood. It's still considered part of the city, but it's not in the heart of downtown. There's plenty of restaurants and little shops and stuff like that, every so often there will be a street vendor, but there's only a few people out, at least at this hour.

"Hi." I nod to an older man as we pass him on the sidewalk

He nods back and we continue on our way.

Every few feet, there's a tree planted near the edge of the sidewalk, Arlo will stop to sniff at it, maybe pee, then continues on his way. He does the same thing when we come to a flower vendor.

"Woah bud." I pull his leash back away from the buckets of flowers "Don't do your business there. I don't think you'd make this man very happy."

"Well he wouldn't be the first one." The man laughs "Can I get you any? It's the end of the night, won't be able to sell 'em tomorrow. I'm willing to bargain."

"What do you have?" I ask "I'm sorta in the dog house right now."

"What'd you do?" He asks

"My wife is five and a half months pregnant and I tried to argue about the paint swatches." I tell him "Got anything for that?"

"Actually, I just might."

* * *

"Cat?" I call when I enter the apartment

I set the flowers down on the table by the door, unhook Arlo's leash, and pull my wallet out of my pocket

"I'm in bed." She calls back

I pick up the bouquet of red, orange, yellow, and pink daises and follow Arlo, who's already following the sound of Cat's voice. She's laying in bed, already chaed into her pajamas and laying under the blankets, watching reruns of Friends on TV.

"Hey." I greet her from the doorway "How's your back?"

"It's better." She turns away from the TV "Oh. What are those for?"

"They're for you." I tell her, sitting down on the edge of the bed "I'm sorry for being a jerk about the paint colors."

"I'm sorry for being hormonal."

"That's not your fault." I chuckle "You can't control your behavior. I can control mine. Will you forgive me?"

"Of course." She smiles "I love you."

"I love you too." I tell her "And, speaking honestly, I think that of the two, Blue Bauble would look the best with the bedding and the furniture."

"That's what I was thinking too." She grins "I'm glad we're on the same page."

"Me too." I lean down and kiss her forehead "Me too."


	21. Chapter 21

_Cat's POV_

I look at the clock in the corner of my computer screen.

2:41.

Only four minutes have passed since the last time I checked, but it feels like four hours.

I don't know how I'm going to get through the rest of this pregnancy. I mean, I'm only 22 weeks as it is, and I'm already uncomfortable just sting here at work. All I want to do is go home and put my feet up. Maybe curl up with Robbie, the puppy and a bowl of popcorn at watch a movie. But no, I'm stuck here, behind this desk, sorting files, answering phone calls, and processing paperwork for another two hours and nineteen minutes when the five o'clock whistle finally blows.

"Cat?" Kylie exclaims

"Huh?" I shake my head, snapping into reality "Sorry, Kylie. I zoned out, what did you say?"

"I just asked if the mail has come yet..."

"Yeah." I tell her, grabbing the stack of envelopes out of the metal wire bin on my desk "Sorry, here you go."

"Thanks..." She gives me a questionable look "Are you okay, Cat?"

"I'm fine." I assure her "Just... baby brain is all."

"Alright..." She gives me a look like she doesn't really believe me, but turns towards the cubicles to hand out mail anyways

It's not a lie. All I seem to think about is the baby now. The perfect, tiny little boy growing inside of me. He'll be here in just under four months, and we still have to paint his room. And assemble all his furniture. And by him clothes. And pick a name,

God we have to pick a name.

Robbie is insisting on Nicholas. And I hate the name Nicholas. I know I wouldn't be able to stop people from shortening it to Nick, and I don't want him to be called Nick, I just don't. I don't know why, it just doesn't set well with me.

He likes Elliot for a middle name though. I like Elliot a million times more than I like Nicholas.

If it were up to me, his name would be Nathaniel. Nathaniel Joel Shapiro. Sounds good, doesn't it? I like it. When I asked Robbie he just shrugged and said 'maybe', I'm hoping I can convince him to keep even just _one_ of the names.

Exhausted, I pick up the phone on my desk and dial the number for Robbie's office. Their secretary answers and connects me.

"Hi." He greets me "How are you?"

"Not good." I sigh, opening up a file on my computer and picking up work where I left off

"What's wrong?"

"Everything." I admit "By back hurts, my stomach is in knots, I'm tired, I can't think straight..."

"Baby I'm sorry..."

"Don't apologize, it's not your fault." I tell him "Well...indirectly it's half your fault, but not really."

"Do you want to order in tonight?"

"Yes." I nod, even though he can't see me "And snuggle in bed and watch a movie with the dog."

"Okay." He chuckles "I think that's doable."

* * *

"Let me do that." Robbie insists, walking up behind me and moving my hand away from the pot that's currently popping popcorn

"I can make popcorn." I sigh

"Just go lay down." He kisses my forehead "You've had a long day, you don't feel well. I've got it."

"Thank you." I smile

"You're welcome."

"C'mon Arlo!" I call to the dog

He and I both make our way into the bedroom. Arlo hops onto the bed immediately, while I take a little longer to climb in. But once I'm half laying, half sitting, propped up by a stack of pillows, I feel a ton of pressure lift off my back, and a wave of relief rush over me.

"C'mere bud." I pat the bed next to me

Arlo walks over, and after circling the spot a few times, lays down and snuggles up next to me.

"Good boy." I smile

"Hey now." Robbie laughs, entering the room popcorn bowl in hand "Save some love and affection for me!"

"Don't worry, I will."

He climbs into bed next to me and I move so he can wrap his arms around my waist. He sets the bowl of popcorn on my lap and picks up the remote, hitting play on the movie.

The room is immediately filled with sound, the volume on our TV was turned all the way up, causing me to shriek, obviously startled. Arlo gets to his feet, growling at the sound bar, even Robbie jumps.

"Sorry!' He apologizes, rapidly hitting the 'volume down' button "You guys okay?"

"Yeah." I shift uncomfortably "We're good. Just a little-oh! Oh that's weird, that's weird!"

Something inside of me just _moved_. Like an entire group of my abdominal muscles all decided to have a spasm at once. Or like someone is running their finger over my skin, trying to tickle me, but from the inside.

"What's weird?" Robbie asks, sitting up, then helping me sit up straight as well "What's wrong? What happened?"

"I think..." I smile, placing a hand on my belly "I think the baby kicked me."

"Really?" He grins "Where? I want to feel!"

"Right about..." I take his hand and place it on the right side of my stomach "Here."

"I don't feel anything."

"Give him a second." I tell him "Come on, baby boy. Let Daddy feel too. Give me something."

It's about another twenty seconds before there's another kick.

"Did you feel that one?"

"Yes!" Robbie exclaims "Oh my god, he's really in there!"

He lays down so his head is next to my stomach.

"Hi there, little guy. It's me, it's Daddy. I know I talk to you all the time, but I just wanted to say hi and remind you how much I love you and how excited I am to meet you."

"I think he's excited to meet you too." I laugh "Based on how much he's moving. I love you too, baby boy. I'm counting down the days until I get to meet you and hold you in my arms, cuddle you close and everything."

"Because you want to meet him?" Robbie teases 'Or because you're _done_ being pregnant?"

"Both." I laugh "But mostly the first one."


	22. Chapter 22

_Cat's POV_

"It's so pretty!" I squeal as Robbie peals the lid off the paint can, revealing the light blue paint inside

"Yeah." Robbie chuckles "And I'm sure our son appreciates you calling his wall color 'pretty'."

"Well you just agreed with me so obviously it's not a lie!" I point out

"Cat get out of there!" Jade calls from the living room "The paint fumes are _terrible_ for the baby!"

"I'll be out in a second!" I tell her "But seriously, I can't wait to see how it turns out."

"We'll make sure it looks perfect." Beck nods

"Yeah." Andre agrees "We promise."

"Don't spill any paint, please." I beg "I can't inhale the fumes, so Tori and Jade will end up being the ones cleaning it."

"Why would they have to clean it up?" Robbie raises an eyebrow "We're more than capable of cleaning up spilled paint."

"No you're not." I laugh "You're idiots."

"Hey!"

"Love you." I smile, kissing his cheek "Call me when we can come back, okay?"

"Okay. What are you ladies doing today?"

"We're gonna go buy more stuff for Little Man." I smile, placing a hand on my baby bump

"More?" He looks surprised

"He needs _clothes,_ Robbie." I laugh "And you know, diapers, washcloths, basic hygiene essentials."

"Right." He nods "Well, have fun."

"You too."

"Oh totally." He laughs

* * *

"How cute is this?" I exclaim, picking up a light grey bath towel with a hood with an elephant head "I love it!"

"You have literally said that to every thing you've picked up." Jade rolls her eyes

"Jade, all baby stuff is adorable." Tori laughs

"And there are matching washcloths!" I tell her "And color coordinated rubber ducks!"

"Of course there are."

"C'mon." I smirk, throwing the towel, washcloths and rubber ducks into the cart "You're having fun, just admit it."

"I'm having fun watching you two have fun. How does that sound?" She chuckles "Hey, no! You can't push that!"

She pushes me away from the shopping cat.

"Why not?" I ask

"Because your back hurts." Tori tells me

"How do you know my back hurts?"

"Because you keep resting your hands on your lower back for support." Jade says "See! You're doing it right now!"

"All pregnant women do that!" I insist, dropping my hands

"Just let Jade push the cart." Tori sighs

"Alright fine. Whatever." I roll my eyes "Let's go look at clothes."

Jade pushes the cart over to the clothing section and Tori and I follow.

My back really _does_ hurt. But that happens to all pregnant women. Right? I'm not a special case. I can handle it, it's nowhere near as bad as it was after my accident.

At least, not yet.

I walk over to one of the tables and pick up one of the onesies on display.

"I get my charm from my Daddy." I read out loud "Oh my god, how cute is that?"

"Robbie has charm?" Jade teases

"Of course he does!" I insist " _Something_ had to make me fall in love with him."

"Here." She grabs another onesie off the same table "Buy him this."

"Coolest nephew ever." I read "No, you buy it for him!"

"Fine." Jade shrugs, folding it over her arm "I'm gonna be his favorite aunt anyway."

"No you're not!" Tori exclaims "I will!"

"Don't fight over my child's affection." I groan, tossing the outfit I had into the cart "At least I know I'll always have two eager babysitters..."

"Until Jade has one." Tori laughs

"That won't be for a while." Jade rolls her eyes

"Why not?"

"I'm not ready for...all of this..." She gestures to the store around us "I wanna establish my career first, enjoy being married for a little bit."

"I just wanna get married." Tori sighs "Will someone drop the hint to Andre _please_?"

"Just wait until he sees how good you are with Little Man." I smile "That will convince him."

"Or scare him." Jade adds

"Can you be helpful for once please?" I beg her

"I'm just being realistic." She shrugs, turning to look at more clothes

"Just give him time." I tell Tori "Anyway, we need lots of outfits in lots of sizes. And a couple blankets."

"Do you have a diaper bag?"

"No." I sigh "I need one of those too."

"Okay." Tori laughs

I find a few sets of flannel receiving blankets, which the baby books say you can never have enough of. Especially when they're little and like to be swaddled. I also find one single blanket that's white fleece covered in blue cartoon elephants. I'm not sure if he'll like it right away, because of the material, but I think it's cute.

We also have bodysuits of various colors and styles coming out of our ears, since they're considered another 'baby essential'. And who can resist footed pajamas? Especially if they say 'Mommy's Little Man' on them?

"Have you spent enough money today?" Tori asks when we're done

"For today." I wink "I make no promises about the next three and a half months."

* * *

"It's starting to look like a little boy is going to be living here." I smile, looking around the now newly blue bedroom "He's going to love it."

"He sure will." Robbie agrees, wrapping his arms around my waist, lacing his hands together over my belly button "Get everything you need today?"

"We still need baby monitors and a diaper bag." I tell him "But that can wait until after the next pay day."

"You could've bought them today." He sighs "We're fine financially, I've told you that."

"I just want to be sure." I loo up at him

"Alright. If that's what you want." He shrugs "How's the little guy doin' today?"

"He's movin' around lots. Here." I move his hand over a few inches "Do you feel that?"

"Yeah." He nods "Holy shit, are those his feet?"

"Yup." I laugh "Pretty cool huh?"

"He's strong."

"Believe me. I know." I sigh

"He's not hurting you, is he?" Robbie asks

"No. _He's_ not. At least not with anything he's doing. It's just my back."

"Maybe we should talk to your doctor about bed rest..."

"No." I insist "I'm fine."

"Cat..."

"Back pain is part of pregnancy." I assure him "If it gets unbearable, I'll let you know."

"Promise?"

"I promise."


	23. Chapter 23

_Cat's POV_

"Let's see..." Robbie sighs "Which box do we tear into first?"

"The crib!" I insist "Then we can put the bedding in there right away and it'll actually start looking like a bedroom!"

"Okay." Robbie chuckles, walking over to the cardboard box containing our son's unassembled crib and ripping into it "The crib it is."

"Or maybe the changing table..." I suggest "Then we'd have somewhere to store all the clothes we bought him."

"I just opened the crib box, I'm putting the crib together." He tells me

"Well then maybe I could start on the changing table." I shrug, walking over to the box

"Nope." He steps in front of me blocking my path "Absolutely not."

"Why not?" I ask "I'm one hundred percent capable of reading some instructions and putting together a changing table!"

"Those are heavy pieces." He reminds me "And you're not allowed to do any heavy lifting, remember?"

"Yeah." I roll my eyes "Then what am I going to do while you put the crib together? Just sit here?"

"You can talk to me, you know." He laughs "Tell me about your day at work?"

"I'm going to go put the bedding in the wash." I tell him, grabbing the package of bedding and the bottle of baby detergent we bought "That way it's clean the first time he sleeps on it. Then I'll come back and tell you about my day."

"Okay sounds good." He smiles

I exit the baby's room and turn left, walking towards the closet right next to the bathroom that hides the stacked washer and dryer unit. I open the washing machine, throw in the crib sheet, quilt, and crib ruffle, then pour the detergent in and hit the start button. After disposing of the plastic packaging the bedding had been in, I head back towards the nursery.

As I walk through the doorway, the baby extends his leg, kicking my abdomen, and sending a wave of pain shooting down my back.

"Ow!" I cry out in pain, leaning against the doorway for support

"Cat!" Robbie exclaims, dropping the book of instructions "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." I wince "Yeah, I'm fine."

He wraps an arm around my waist and helps me stand upright again. But for some reason, all of a sudden, the weight of the baby is too much to support, and I end up falling into him again.

"Nope." I shake my head

"Tell me what hurts." He tells me

"My back." I sigh "Right where my scars from all of my surgeries are."

"Alright come on..." He picks me up bridal style "Let's see if laying down does you any good."

It probably will, if the pressure is taken of my back, it shouldn't hurt. At least not as bad.

"I'm going to call Doctor Fletcher." Robbie tells me as he lays me down on the bed "See what she wants us to do about this."

"No!" I beg "Robbie no, please don't!"

"Cat, you can't stand! I have to call." He sighs, pulling out his cell phone

"She's gonna put me on bed rest!"

"So?"

"I'm just _barely_ six months!" I remind him "I can't just lay in bed for twelve weeks."

"I'm still going to call." He says, pressing the phone to his ear and exiting the bedroom

Arlo passes him on his way out. The dog has a way of sensing when I'm in pain, so he hops up onto the bed and cuddles up next to me.

"Hey bud..." I pet his head "Don't worry, I'm okay."

I place my hand on my stomach and wait for the baby to make some kind of movement. When I feel his foot make contact with my hand, I can't help but smile.

It's just a reminder that at the end of all of this, I'll have a perfect little baby boy.

* * *

"I'm going to put you on bed rest, Cat." Doctor Fletcher tells me "I know that's not what you wanted to hear from me, but it's what's going to end up being best for you and for the baby."

"Alright." I sigh as Robbie rubs my back "But how extreme of bed rest? In some of the pregnancy books I've read, they say some women are still allowed to go to work."

"I don't want you going to work." She shakes her head "The baby puts a tremendous amount of pressure on your back whenever you're doing anything _but_ laying down. You can shower, and you can do _extremely_ light housework, but I want you in bed, laying down, as often as possible."

"I understand." I nod

"If it helps, everything with the baby looks healthy and normal." She tells us

"That's good." I smile

"Okay, I'll see you next month for the 7 month appointment." She says, standing up and shaking Robbie's hand "Enjoy the rest of your evening."

"You too." Robbie nods, then turns to me "I'm sorry, Cat."

"It's okay, I guess." I shrug, placing a hand on my bump "I just want what's best for him..."

"And I want what's bet for both of you." He tells me "I bet it won't be so bad."

"Except I'll be by myself all day." I remind him

"You'll have Arlo!"

"I love him...but it's not the same."

"Yeah..." He sighs "I know it's not...maybe we can see if your mom can come over and check on you a couple times a week. And Tori is a teacher, so I'm sure once school gets out she'd be more than happy to come spend some time with you."

"Maybe..." I shrug "And I know Jade has flexible hours, maybe she could come too."

"See? It won't be _that_ bad."

"That doesn't mean it'll be fun either, though."


	24. Chapter 24

_Cat's POV_

I still wake up at the same time as Robbie everyday, even though I'm not going to work with him. We eat breakfast together, wanting to spend as much time with one another as possible before he has to leave for work.

Usually, I'm more than eager to get up in the morning and wander into the kitchen to eat with him, but this morning in particular, I'm having a little trouble.

Five years ago today, Robbie asked me to be his girlfriend. I said yeas, and we became officially 'official'. I know, it's a happy memory. However, one year ago today, he took me out to dinner to celebrate being together for _four_ years.

And one year ago today, the unthinkable happened, and both of our lives were changed forever.

When Robbie returns to our bedroom about twenty minutes after he got up, freshly showered and dressed in a shirt and tie, I'm still laying in bed. He walks over to my side of the bed, leans down, and presses a kiss to my lips.

"Hey." He smiles "I love you."

"I know." I tell him "I love you too."

"Are you okay?"

"It's been a year."

"I know." He sighs, sitting down on the bed next to me "I know it has. Are you okay?"

"I dunno." I shrug "It's still just so fresh in my mind, you know? It's like..."

 _"Goin' a little fast, aren't ya?" I raise an eyebrow at Robbie_

 _"I'm only going ten over." He assures me "I don't want to miss our reservation."_

 _"So we're going out to dinner!"_

 _"I never said that." He smirks "Just hold on, we'll be there soon."_

 _"Holing on." I laugh, grabbing the handle on the door_

 _"Very funny." He rolls his eyes_

 _We drive on for a little longer. Eventually, I lean forward and turn the radio to some pop station, and begins to song to the lyrics now blaring from the speakers._

 _"Are we almost there?" I ask him_

 _"Uh..." HE glances down to look at the directions he had printed and now has sitting on the floor of the car "We should be there in abou-"_

 _Ahead of us, taillights start swerving, revealing a bright pair of headlights heading our direction_

 _"ROBBIE!" I scream_

 _He drops my hand and grips the wheel, steering hard left. For a brief millisecond, it looks like we'll make it. But the oncoming car clips the back of ours, and sending us spinning into oncoming traffic in the other lane._

 _I search desperately, trying to grip Robbie's hand again, but for some reason, I can't seem to find it. Horns blare and something hard hits me brutally on the right side of my body as my world starts to fade and become black._

"Cat?" Robbie's voice snaps me back to reality "Are you okay?"

"It's like it just happened last week or something." I finish my thought "It's still scary."

"Here." He extends a hand to me "Come on sit up. I know it's scary, it's still scary for me too. I almost lost the most important thing in the world to me. But I didn't. You're still here with me, and we're married, and in a few months we're going to have the most _amazing_ baby boy."

"All I can think about is waking up in that hospital room." I shake my head, tears filling up in my eyes "My entire body was consumed by pain, I wanted to scream but I _couldn't,_ I had that stupid breathing tube wedged down my throat. Every time I tried to take a breath, it felt like a million knives were stabbing me in the chest, but I had to endure it because if you don't breathe, you die! I wanted to cry so badly, but I didn't even have enough energy to open my eyes all the way, let alone cry. So I had to just lay there, feeling numb all over because I didn't have any other choice..."

"Hey..." He wraps his arms around me and pulls me into a tight hug "Cat...don't cry...it's over now. It's all over."

"Except..." I stutter "Except it's not. I still can't walk right, I still have nightmares, I can't even sit in a car for more than ten minutes without having a panic attack!"

"Yeah and you know what? Together you and I, we'll be able to get through that."

"Promise?"

"I promise." He assures me "What's really important, all that matters to me, is that you're still here with me, and you're healthy again and you've almost fully recovered. What's important is that the asshole that did this to you is in prison, paying the price. What's important is that I love you."

"I love you too." I whisper

Robbie takes my hand in his and presses it into the side of my belly. After about ten seconds, the baby kicks there, and just like always, I can't help but smile.

"Did you feel that?" He asks me

"Yes." I nod "I did."

"That's our _son_ in there." He reminds me "If all of this hadn't happened, who knows? We might not even have him. I know, it sucks what happened, and it's painful to relive and to think about, but it's part of who we are now. Think about it, you _defied_ odds, remember? You had a one to two percent chance of ever walking again, and look at you now..."

"Yeah...I guess you're right." I tell him "Thanks for never giving up on me."

"I would never even think of doing such a thing." He presses a kiss to my temple

I was in an accident that has brought _a lot_ of negative into my life. But I have an amazing husband, amazing friends and family, and soon, I'm going to have an amazing little boy. So I guess you could say I have even more _positives_ to focus on.


	25. Chapter 25

Cat's POV

"Nathaniel Joel!" I exclaim into the empty apartment

"Who are you yelling at?" Jade laughs, entering my bedroom

And scaring the shit out of me too, I might add.

"Jesus Christ!" I cover my face with my hands "You scared the shit out of me! Are you trying to send me into premature labor?"

"Nah." Jade smirks, shrugging her laptop bag off her shoulder and setting it down on the bed.

"How did you even get in here?" I ask "Robbie always locks the door when he leaves for work in the morning."

"You gave me a key." She holds up the spare I had given her "Remember?"

"Yeah, for emergencies." I remind her

"This is an emergency."

"How so?"

"You've been tweeting about how bored and how lonely you are all day." She tells me "I can basically pick my own hours so I figured 'Hey, what the hell? I'll go visit Cat today', and here I am."

"Here you are." I sigh "Arlo! Why didn't you bark?"

The dog, who has been laying in bed next to me all morning, turns and looks at me, then places his head back down on the bed.

"Lazy boy." I tease, petting his head

"So who's Nathaniel?" Jade asks, sitting down on the edge of the bed

"That's what I wanna name the baby..." I admit, resting a hand on my baby bump and rubbing it softly

The bigger he gets, the more uncomfortable I get.

"So you're just yelling it just for fun?" She raises an eyebrow at me

"No!" I insist "I was testing it."

"Testing it how?"

"Well usually, when a child gets in trouble, you scold them using their first and middle names, right?"

"Sure."

"So you practice saying the first and middle names in a stern way like that to test if the name sounds good or not." I shrug

"I've never heard of that."

"Well now you have." I chuckle

"So you want to name him Nathaniel?" She asks

"Nathaniel Joel." I nod "Yeah, I can't get Robbie on board though."

"Well if he agreed it would make the whole thing entirely too easy." She laughs "He likes Nicholas, right?"

"Yeah." I roll my eyes "Nicholas Elliot."

"It's not terrible." She shrugs

"I know, I know." I sigh "I just can't stand the name Nicholas though."

"Well what about Elliot? Maybe you could compromise." She suggests "Or maybe come up with a third name you both like."

"Yeah, hihgly unlikely." I scoff "We talked about Mason James briefly the other night though."

"That's cute."

"Exactly." I sigh " _Cute_. Which works when he's little. But what bout when he grows up?"

"Good point." Jade agrees "So, how's the little guy doin' in there?"

"I think he's good, as far as I know at least." I smile "He's been movin' around a lot today."

"I bet that's driving you insane."

"It's not so bad." I shrug "I only get annoyed when he kicks me in the ribs. Or when I'm trying to sleep and he won't sit still."

"How often do you get kicked in the ribs?" She looks shocked

"At least twice a day."

"Aw Cat, I'm sorry."

"Whatever, it's not so bad." I sigh "And that's just part of being pregnant, right?"

"I guess." She says "So...what do you do all day?"

"Watch movies, read the baby books, talk to the dog." I tell her "Once Robbie gets the changing table slash dresser put together I'll probably start folding his clothes up and putting them away."

"You don't have everything put together yet?" She looks surprised "Aren't you due in like two months?"

"Ten weeks." I correct her "We have time."

"Not that much time."

"But we have enough time."

Don't we?

* * *

"What's gotten into you, Arlo?" Robbie sighs as Arlo continues to bark repeatedly

I sit up and look over the back of the couch to see both of them in front of the doorway to the baby's nursery.

"Was he barking like this today?" Robbie asks

I shake my head no.

I swing my legs over the edge of the couch and hoist myself up onto my feet. Supporting my back with one of my hands, I walk over to them.

"You should be resting." Robbie tells me

"Relax, I've been resting all day." I wave him off "Arlo, what's the matter bud?"

"I just took him for a walk, he doesn't need to go out." Robbie insists "Did you feed him today?"

"Yes." I sigh "Wait hang on."

I walk over to the doorway and pick up the baby gate that Robbie had just placed there not even twenty minutes ago. As I do so, Arlo immediately stops barking, and enters the room.

"He just wanted into the nursery." I roll my eyes "Someone isn't going to be a very happy camper for the next few days."

"He just needs some time to get used to it." Robbie assures me "But we've gotta hold up our end of the deal and not let him in."

We decided that Arlo won't be allowed in the baby's room until he's old enough Arlo won't disturb him, or accidentally crush him. Robbie purchased a baby gate to put in the doorway, and we figured the sooner we can start getting Arlo adjusted to his new boundaries, the better. He doesn't seem too happy though.

"Arlo!" I call "C'mon, out!"

He trots out of the bedroom and Robbie replaces the gate.

"Sorry buddy." Robbie apologizes "You're not gonna be allowed in there for a while."

"Somebody's used to being the only chid and getting whatever he wants." I laugh "Do you think he's in for a rude awakening?"

"Maybe at first." Robbie shrugs "But I think he'll be fine after a few days or so."

"I just realized I'm going to be the only girl in the house of three boys." I tell Robbie "You, Arlo, and Little Man. Talk about out numbered."

"Well, maybe we can try again for a girl in a few year." Robbie suggests

"We'll see." I laugh "Let's see how it goes with this one first."


	26. Chapter 26

_Robbie's POV_

"Robbie!" Cat exclaims "Don't walk away from me when I'm talking to you!"

"I'm done arguing about this." I tell her, walking out of our bedroom and into the living room

"I'm not!" She insists, getting out of bed and following me, Arlo at her heels

"Cat." I sigh "Get back in bed, you know you're supposed to be resting as much as possible."

"I wouldn't have had to get up if you hadn't walked away from me." She says firmly, resting a hand on her back for support

"I don't want to fight with you!" I shake my head "Let's just talk about this another time."

"We're going to end up having the same argument every time, Robbie. We might as well just have it now!"

"Cat don't yell." I beg her "You're stressing yourself out and that stresses the baby out. It's terrible for him."

"Oh no." She corrects me, waving a finger in my face "I'm not stressing me out, _you're_ stressing me out."

"What? How is this _my_ fault?"

"I asked a _simple_ question and you turned it into an argument!"

"You aren't exactly staying calm either, Cat."

"I'm pregnant!" She exclaims "I can be overdramatic if I want to!"

"How is _that_ fair?"

"It takes two to make a baby, Robbie." She sighs "You're just as responsible for my moodiness as I am!"

"You're the one making a big deal out of nothing!" I insist

"It's not nothing Robbie!" She groans "Godparents are a very big deal!"

"Well excuse me for wanting my best friend to be the godfather." I scoff

"Well _excuse_ me for wanting _my_ best friend to be his godmother!" She imitates my tone "You're friends with Beck too!"

"I roomed with Andre for four years in college, Cat!" I remind her "He was a really good friend to me when you were hurt too. He's my best friend. Yeah, I'm friends with Beck too, but I'm closer to Andre."

"Well I'm closer to Jade than I am to Tori!" Cat exclaims "I've known her way longer too! I want her and Beck to be his godparents."

"Well I want Tori and Andre to be his godparents."

"And we're back to square one." She throws her arms up in defeat, storming out of the living room and into the kitchen

"What are you doing?" I sigh

"I'm getting ice cream!"

"Why?"

"Because I'm hungry!" She rolls her eyes "God, am I not allowed to eat anymore?"

"I was just asking a question..."

"Well it was a stupid question!"

"I realize that now..." I mutter under my breath

"What?" She asks

"Nothing." I sigh

"No, what did you say?" She insists "Tell me."

"I said I realize that it was a stupid question."

"Damn straight it was." She scoffs

"Why are you still mad at me?" I ask

"Because you're still being an idiot!" She snaps "Robbie. Beck and Jade are married, they're the logical choice. I know it doesn't seem likely, but Tori and Andre _could_ break up. And then what? Then it's awkward for everyone."

"They're not going to break up..."

"Oh?" She cocks her head to the side "Is Andre planning on proposing soon?"

"Well no I don't think so bu-"

"Then there's still a possibility." She turns and starts walking back towards the bedroom

"Beck and Jade could get divorced!" I remind her "You never know!"

"What's more likely?!" She snaps "Tori and Andre breaking up or Beck and Jaaaaaade-Ow! Ow ow ow ow ow!"

She drops the carton of ice cream and leans against the wall, sliding down to the floor, both hands clutching her stomach.

"Shit!" I exclaim, rushing over and kneeling down next to her "Cat? What's wrong?"

"It hurts." She cringes

"What hurts?" I ask

"Everything below my waist." She tells me "I know what this is..."

"What is it? How can I help you?"

"You can't help me..." She chuckles, catching her breath "These are Braxton Hicks contractions."

"Contractions?" I feel sick "We have to go to the hospital, Cat!"

"No we don't, idiot. Calm down." She tells me "Braxton Hicks contractions are like...practice contractions. They don't actually mean labor."

"You're positive?"

"Absolutely." She nods "Why else would I be having contractions at 31 weeks? It's not actual labor, that's not logical."

"You're sure."

"Yes Robert." She sighs "Now help me up."

I extend a hand to her and pull her to her feet.

"Arlo! No!" I scold as the dog runs for the ice cream now laying on the floor

He cowers into our bedroom and hops up on the bed as I help Cat climb back in next to him.

"You're sure you're okay?" I ask

"I swear to god if you ask me that one more time-"

"Okay okay." I throw my hands up in surrender "I'm sorry, okay?"

"I know you are..." She sighs "I'm sorry for being a bitch..."

"You're not a bitch..." I smile, leaning down and kissing her forehead "You're just pregnant."


	27. Chapter 27

_Cat's POV_

"Ready?" I show Arlo the tennis ball "Go get it!"

I throw the ball through the bedroom door, out into the apartment, and the dog takes off running after it.

Probably not the _best_ indoor game to be playing, but it's keeping both of us entertained for the time being. And we haven't broken anything yet, so what's the harm?

Arlo retrieves the ball and brings it back to me, hoping up onto the bed and laying down.

"Oh are you done now?" I raise an eyebrow at him "Alright, that's fine I guess."

The one real positive to being on bed rest is getting to spend more time with my puppy, I'm able to give him all the attention he might not be getting when the baby comes in nine short weeks.

My phone buzzes on the table next to the bed. I pick it up and read the text from tori, telling me that she's parked and on her way up to the apartment.

"Wanna go get the door?" I ask Arlo

He turns his head to look at me, then turns away again.

"That's what I thought..." I sigh, sitting up

I throw my legs over the side of the bed and use my arms to push myself up so I'm standing, letting out a grunt as I do so. When I walk now, I have to use both of my hands to support my back, which isn't good, because it can sometimes throw off my balance. I'm _barely_ out of my second trimester too, I'm 31 weeks at this point, and the baby is still on the smaller side. I can only imagine what it would be like if I was almost full term with a normal sized baby...I guess I'll find out soon enough...

I walk out of the bedroom, into the living room and towards the door. I'm about halfway there when I feel it. The odd sensation I've been feeling on and off for the past eighteen hours. It almost feels like period cramps to me, but all of my abdominal muscles are tightening too. It's so uncomfortable that I have to stop and lean against the wall for about a minute until they subside. There's a knock at the door and I continue moving forward to let Tori in.

"One strawberry lemonade smoothie from the café you told me about." Tori smiles when I open the door

"Aw thank you." I sigh, taking the paper to-go cup from her and stepping to the side so she can enter "You're great."

"I know I am." She smirks "Now go get back in bed!"

"Fine." I roll my eyes and turn on my heel, heading back towards the bedroom

I place my smoothie on the bedside table, next to my phone, and crawl back into bed. Tori comes in behind me, and sits on top of the blankets on Robbie's side next to me. She opens her bag and pulls out a stack of papers.

"Wanna help me grade?" She asks

"Absolutely!" I grin "It'll probably be the most interesting thing I do all day."

Tori is the choir director at Northridge High School. In addition to running all three choirs, she also directs the school musical. This year it was Bye Bye Birdie, the performances were last weekend. Robbie actually let me out of the apartment to go to the Sunday matinée showing, I was so relived to get out for a while. It was very well done and she should be extremely proud of her students and herself.

However, the school also requires her to teach their music theory class both semesters as well. Which means she has grading to do outside of school as well, especially now with the end of the year approaching.

"You remember how this works, right?" She asks me

"Yup!" I nod "Ninety percent and up get stickers, eighty to eighty-nine percent get a smiley face drawn in the upper right hand corner and you get to handle the comments for all of the seventy-nines and under."

"It's like you've done this before or something." She laughs

"A few times." I chuckle as she hands me the first paper "Damn, these papers are long. Are they finals?"

"Yup." She nods "I've gotta get em all graded by next Thursday too, so they know where their grades stand before they go into final exams."

"Well aren't you a goo-aaaahhh." I cringe

"Are you okay?!" She exclaims

"Yeah yeah, I'm fiiiine." I wave her off "It's just Braaaaaaxton Hicks!"

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. I mean, I'm only 31 weeks, they can't be real."

"Yes they can."

"No they can't." I shake my head

"Yes, they can Cat." Tori says seriously "It's called premature labor, it's not as uncommon as you think. What do these 'Braxton Hicks' feel like?"

"Well," I sigh "It feels like I have really bad period cramps, and that every single one of my abdominals is tightening up."

"Is that it?"

"Um...well sometimes it stings...you know...down there. But that's normal right?"

"No!" Tori exclaims "That means you could be dilating!"

"That's not possible." I repeat

"You need to call your doctor." She tells me "Just see if they think it's anything. I'm more than willing to drive you if they want you to come in. Cat? Cat!"

"Can you do it?" I whisper "I'm scared."

"Of course I can." She nods "Juts give me the number."

* * *

 _Robbie's POV_

"Hey Robbie?" My coworker John calls from his cubicle

"What time is it?"

"Check your computer!"

"I already turned it off for the day!"

I look at the clock at the corner of my computer screen.

"It's 4:30." I tell him "You can go home in half an hour."

"Sweet!" He cheers "Thanks dude."

"Sure." I chuckle

The phone on my desk starts ringing, I reach forward and answer it.

"This is Robbie." I answer

"Robbie? It's me..."

"Cat?" I smile "Hey, what's up?"

"You need to come to the hospital."

I feel my heart drop into my stomach, and then my stomach twist into knots.

The hospital?

"What?" I exclaim "Why? What's wrong?"

"I...I'm..." She hesitates, then I hear her turn the receiver away

But not far enough away that I can tell that she's crying.

There's rustling on the other end and then another familiar voice starts talking.

"Robbie? Hi. It's Tori."

"Hey." I greet her "What's going on? Is Cat okay?"

"More or less." She tells me "She was telling me about her Braxton Hicks contractions earlier and the more information she gave me the more they sounded like _real_ contractions. So, we called her doctor, and she said she wanted Cat to go to the emergency room and that she would meet us there and it turns out..."

"What?" I ask "What's wrong?"

"She's four centimeters dilated, she's in labor."

"Which hospital are you at?"

"Los Angeles Children's. It has one of the best NICUs in the country-"

"I'll be there as soon as I can. Tell Cat I'm coming."


	28. Chapter 28

_Cat's POV_

"Cat!" Robbie exclaims, stopping in front of my hospital room

He's winded and out of breath, like he's been running.

"Robbie." I breathe a sigh of relief "What took you so long? I was getting worried!"

"It's the start of rush hour." He tells me, setting his jacket and laptop bag down on the floor next to my bed "There was a lot of traffic. Don't worry, I'm here now."

"I'm so scared." I admit, shaking my head "Robbie, I'm scared."

"Shhhh." He wraps his arms around me and pulls me into a hug "It's okay, it's all going to be okay."

I start to let all the tears I've been holding in for the past hour or so fall down my face, staining Robbie's dress shirt. Scared really doesn't even begin to describe how I'm feeling right now. We're not ready for the baby to come now. We haven't finished baby proofing the apartment yet, not all of his furniture is put together, Arlo still hates the baby gate. The only job that I have had was to keep my little boy safe, and I wasn't even able to do that. He's going to be nine weeks premature and it's all my fault.

"I'm so sorry." I apologize

"Why?" Robbie asks

"This is all my fault!"

"Cat..." Tori sighs from the plastic chair in the corner of the room "The doctor told you, you did everything right. Nothing happening right now is because of anything you did."

"Thank you so much for bringing her." Robbie thanks Tori "And for thinking quickly."

"Not a problem." She assures him, standing up and grabbing her bag "But now that you're here, I need to run home and change, let Andre know what's going on. I'll be back later."

"Alright." Robbie nods "Take your time, thanks again."

"You're welcome." She nods, walking over to the bed and squeezing my shoulder "It's gonna be alright, Cat."

"I hope so." I whisper

Tori leaves and Robbie and I sit in silence for a while, tears are still running down my face, but I'm not crying. For some reason, I can't stop them from coming. There's a knock at the door. Robbie and I both look up to see Doctor Fletcher standing in the doorway.

"Hi there." She greets us "Oh Robbie, glad to see you're here now. Can I come in?"

"Of course." Robbie tells her

I lay back against the bed, Robbie takes my hand in his, making circles on the back it with his thumb, something I've always found comforting for some reason.

"How are you feeling Cat?" She asks me "Have the contractions gotten any stronger? Or any closer together?"

I shake my head no.

"Are you nervous?"

"Very." I tell her "And anxious, and scared."

"All normal feelings." She nods "What about you, Dad? You doing okay?"

"Yeah." Robbie tells her "I mean, it's still setting in. We weren't really expecting him for at least another two months or so."

"That's what Cat was telling me earlier when she first came in." The doctor says "About one in every ten babies born in the United States are premature, and this hospital has one of the best neonatal intensive care units in the country, so don't worry, your little guy I going to be just fine. He's in great hands."

"Why..." Robbie hesitates "What happened to make him come so early?"

"It could've been any combination of a number of things." She says "Because Cat started out having twins, there's a chance her body still hasn't realized she _isn't_ having multiples, it could be because of the limitations on her body from the accident, she could've been under high levels of stress...we don't really have any way of knowing."

I immediately feel a pang of guilt in my chest.

 _High levels of stress_.

Robbie and I were practically _screaming_ at each other last night before my contractions started. This really could be my fault.

"And there's no way to stop it?" I ask

"Not anymore, I'm afraid. You're already four centimeters dilated. He's coming now, whether we're all ready for him or not."

* * *

"Robbie." I moan, extending my hand to him

"Contraction?" He asks, taking it and squeezing it reassuringly

I nod, closing my eyes.

They're steadily getting worse, and while they only last for maybe thirty seconds or so, they're getting closer together.

Finally, after what seems like an eternity, I let out a deep breath and let go of Robbie's hand.

"I want to compromise with you." Robbie tells me "On his godparents."

"Oh?" I raise an eyebrow at him "How?

"You can pick his godfather, and I'll pick his godmother." He says "They don't necessarily have to be married, or dating, but that way it's fair. Since we seem to want to favor our friends."

"Alright." I nod "I want his godfather to be Andre then."

"Really?" His face lights up

"Yeah. I mean, you're right. He's your best friend, he should be the godfather."

"Thanks, Cat." He smiles "And actually, I was going to say that Jade should be his godmother. Because you were right too, she's one of your best friends, and you've technically known her longer than Tori."

"I wish we would've just realized this last night." I sigh "Maybe then we could've avoided this whole situation."

"We're gonna be parents." He smirks, taking my hand in his again "It doesn't matter if it's today, tomorrow, or two months from now. You, me, Arlo, and the little guy, we're gonna be a family. It's all gonna be okay, okay?"

"Okay."


	29. Chapter 29

_Cat's POV_

My labor progresses quickly, almost too quickly for my liking.

Robbie and I have so much that we need to sort out, and our son just isn't giving us the time.

How long am I going to wait before I go back to work? Who will take care of him while I'm there? If anything were to happen to us, who will take care of him?

What is his name going to be?

Robbie has been trying to shed light on the conversation, joking that our son is just like his Mom, he never wants to be late. So he's coming early. The first time he said it, it made me smile, so I guess it served it's purpose.

I was finally dilated enough around 6:00 to get an epidural. It helped with the pain, but it still hurts. Especially because he's so close to where my incisions from my back surgeries are. With each passing contraction I grow more and more terrified. What if something is _really_ wrong with him? What if it's all my fault? All because I wasn't physically healthy enough to have a baby so soon after my accident?

"ROBBIE!" I scream as another contraction hits

The door to the bathroom attached to my hospital room flies open and my husband rushes to my bedside. He grabs my hand and I squeeze it as if my life depended on it.

"These things are getting closer and closer together now aren't they?" He chuckles

"Mhm." I nod, trying to keep from screaming again

"Squeeze my hand." He says calmly "Transfer all that pain you're feeling to me."

"If only I could." I squeak

"Shhhhh..." He rubs my arm closest to him with his free hand "Just breathe, you're almost done."

"Easy for you to say!" I exclaim "Sorry, sorry...I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, it's totally alright."

"I think that one's done now." I let out a deep breath "Thank god. They're getting stronger and closer together."

"I noticed." Robbie nods "But hey, that means you're getting closer to being done, right?"

"I guess." I shrug

"Hi there." A nurse knocks on the door

"Hi." I try my best to smile "Come in."

"Just here to check your dilation." She tells me

"No problem."

I lean back against my pillow, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. Robbie brushes the hair out of my face and leans forward, planting a kiss on my forehead.

"I love you." He whispers

"I know." I smirk "I love you too."

"Cat?" The nurse says "You're ten centimeters. As soon as I can track down Doctor Fletcher, you'll be ready to push."

"What?" I gasp

"Your baby will be here soon." She smiles "I'll be right back."

"Robbie."

"It's going to be okay." He assures me "Everything is going to be just fine."

"I'm scared." I admit "Robbie, I don't know if I can do this!"

"Cat, listen to me." He turns my head so we're eye to eye "You are the most _amazing_ person I have ever met, the past year says enough. This is going to be _nothing_ compared to that. Okay? Nothing. You can _do_ this."

"I don't know if I can."

"You can." He kisses me "You can, you can, you can."

"Text everyone." I tell him "Let them know that I'm pushing."

"Already way ahead of you." He smiles

"Who's ready to have a baby?" Doctor Fletcher smiles, entering my hospital room

"Um, I guess me."

"You're in good hands Cat. Everything will be just fine." She nods

"Here." One of the nurses hands Robbie a pair of mint green scrubs "Put these on over your clothes."

"Look." He teases me "I'm gonna be the most fashion forward guy in this hospital."

I manage to crack a smile as the Doctor starts to help me get ready.

"Just wait for the next contraction to hit." She explains "When it does, push as if your life depends on it, okay?"

"Okay." I nod

"Ready?" She asks "Here it comes. 1...2...3...push!"

I let out the loudest, highest-pitched scream I think I ever have, grabbing the side railing of my bed with my right hand, Robbie's with my left and pushing just like Doctor Fletcher told me to.

It hurts like hell, and I could only imagine what it would be like with a normal-sized baby, but I try to push that thought far from my mind.

"He needs a name!" I shriek

"Do you really think _now_ is the best time to talk about this?" Robbie looks shocked

"We have to at some point!" I exclaim "Robbie, please! It will keep my mind off of everything else."

"Okay...um, well..." He hesitates "We have the two names that we like, Nicholas and Nathaniel."

"I..." I pant "I...I..."

"You what?"

"I hate...them both!"

"What? I knew you hated Nicholas from the beginning, but you've always loved Nathaniel. What happened?"

"Alright Cat, that one is done with, take a breather." The doctor instructs me

"I used to." I turn towards Robbie "But it's such a long name. And I hate basically every nickname that goes with it."

"Alright..." He sighs "Well, can you think of any others that you like?"

"Here comes another contraction..." Doctor Fletcher announces "Get ready to push again."

"ELLIOT!" I cry as I start pushing again "I like Elliot."

"That's the same amount of syllables as Nathaniel!"

"I know..." I take a deep breath "I know. But I was on some...Mommy blogs and there's so many cute...nicknames. OH MY GOD THIS HURTS!"

"Come on Cat, I can see his head!" Doctor Fletcher tells me "Keep pushing!"

"You can do it, baby! I know you can!" Robbie stands up so he can get closer to me

He rests his forehead against my temple and I grab the same hand I've been holding onto with both of mine this time. I let out another scream.

"Tell me about the nicknames." He says "What nicknames did you find for Elliot?"

"Leo!" I tell him "We could call him Leo."

"Leo." He repeats "I love it."

"You do?"

"Yeah." He smiles "I really do. But..."

"But what?!" I exclaim "OH I CAN'T DO THIS!"

"Yes you can." He encourages me "You're almost there! And I was going to say...If we're calling him Leo, why not just name him that?"

"Leo?"

"Leo." He nods "Leo Shapiro. Sounds good, doesn't it?"

"Yeah." I gasp for air "Yeah it does. But what about...his middle name?"

"You can pick." He tells me "Whatever you want."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Just one more big push!"

I scream one final time, pushing hard, and all of a sudden all of the pressure I had been feeling down there is relieved, at it doesn't hurt nearly as bad anymore. I look up to see Doctor Fletcher holding possibly the smallest baby I've ever seen, but my heart starts to well up in my chest because I know that tiny little baby is mine. Mine and Robbie's. That's our son.

"Joel." I whisper, looking at Robbie "Leo Joel Shapiro."

"I love it." He smiles, leaning down and pressing a long passionate kiss to my lips "You did it, Cat! That's our son!"

Tears of happiness and relief start to sting my eyes as nurses start rushing around frantically.

"What's going on?" I ask "What's wrong?"

"Ma'am, we need to take your son to the NICU." A nurse tells me "He was premature and we just need to make sure everything is okay."

"Why wouldn't everything be okay?" I ask

"It's just a precaution."


	30. Chapter 30

_Cat's POV_

" _But you know that when the truth is told, That you can get what you want, Or you can just get old_..." I sing " _You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through, When will you realize... Vienna waits for you_..."

I rest my forehead against the top of the incubator, staring at my hand that I've placed inside of it. The sleeping baby inside has all five of his little fingers wrapped around just one of mine. My little boy.

Leo Joel Shapiro was born at 9:34 pm on May 21st, nine weeks and one day before his actual due date. He weighs two pounds, fourteen ounces. He's the smallest baby I've ever seen in my entire life, small enough that Robbie could probably hold him in just his hands. Of course, that would mean they'd have to let us hold him, and that's not allowed yet. It breaks my heart, I just want to cuddle him to my chest and tell him that I love him, but he's not stable enough yet.

Never in my life did I ever think I would be able to love something so much. But here's Leo.

Babies don't develop the ability to suck, breathe, and swallow all at the same time until they've developed to 34 weeks, Leo is only thirty one. So he has a feeding tube, in addition to his breathing tube. He's hooked up to so many monitors, he almost looks like a robot baby. The nurses tell me it's only for the first twenty four hours, just to keep an eye on him, but it's still so hard for me to look at. I feel partially responsible.

"Hey." Robbie whispers, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist

"Careful." I warn him, moving his hands up a little bit "I'm still sore."

"Sorry." He apologizes "How's he doing?"

"He's got my finger." I chuckle "God...he's so small..."

"Yeah..." Robbie sighs "He is. But he's alive, so we should be grateful."

"We should." I agree "He truly is our little miracle baby."

I reach inside the incubator with my other hand and pry Leo's tiny little fingers off of my index finger. He furrows his eyebrows and fusses a bit.

"Shhhh...I know baby." I whisper "I know."

I pull both of my rings off my left hand, replacing my engagement ring, and hold my silver wedding ring up to Leo's foot. It won't fit over his foot, but it would definitely fit around his ankle. I'm able to slip it over his hand and run it up his arm until about the middle of his bicep.

"Look at that..." I shake my head, slipping the ring off of my son's arm and back onto my finger "This is so surreal."

"I know." Robbie kisses my temple "I know."

"I love you, Leo Joel." I whisper "Mommy loves you."

* * *

"Hi sweetheart." My mother greets me, entering my hospital room, followed closely behind by my father

"Hi." I smile lazily towards them

I had just managed to fall asleep for the first time in over twenty four hours, but oh well.

"How are you feeling?" She asks

"I'm a little sore..." I sigh "I'm _really_ tired."

"How's my grandson?" My dad asks "I figured you'd be attached to him 24/7."

"I wish I could be." I admit "Robbie made me come back and try to get a little sleep, I was with him from about eleven o'clock last night to about noon today. He's with him now, last I heard everything was still okay."

"Well, we got him this." My mom says, handing me a giant gift bag that has 'It's a Boy!' written across it in big blue letters.

Inside there's at least a dozen little preemie outfits, all in various prints and colors.

"Oh, Mom, you didn't have to..." I sigh "Thank you."

"You're welcome." She grins "What's the point in having a grandchild if you can't spoil them?"

"Would you..." I pause "Do you wanna see him? He's probably asleep, I haven't actually seen him awake at all yet, but I don't think visiting hours end until nine."

"We'd love to."

"Okay." I start sitting up "Just give me a minute."

Between the back pain from the pregnancy and the accident, combined with being sore from labor, the next few days will be extremely interesting for me.

"Here." My mom loops her arm around one of mine "Let me help you."

"Me too." My dad loops one of his around my other

"Thanks." I smile "Come on, he's this way."

I'm still staying in the maternity ward until tomorrow because of hospital protocol, but Leo is in the NICU. Which takes up half of the floor above us.

My parents and I walk to the elevator and I hit the button to take us upstairs. When we step off the elevator, I lead the to the desk to our right.

"Hi." The nurse greets us "Bringing some family in to visit?'

"Yeah." I tell her "These are my parents."

"Nice to meet you." She smile "Names please?"

"Paul and Diane Valentine."

She types their names into the computer and prints out visitor nametags for them both. Then I lead them through the door next to the desk where we wash our hands, then another nurse comes and checks our temperatures to make sure we're healthy enough to go in.

"Wow." My dad says "Maximum security here, I see."

"They just want to make sure all the babies stay as healthy as they can." I whisper, pushing the door to the nursery open "He's this way, follow me."

The room is quiet, filled only with the sounds of buzzing monitors and the hushed whispers of any parents who are already in there. Only half the lights are turned on and they're dimmed, so that they're not too harsh on the babies' eyes.

Leo's crib is in the back left corner of the room, next to one of the windows. Robbie is sitting in a plastic hospital chair next to it, reading a book, with one hand stuck inside the incubator so Leo can hold onto his finger.

"Hey." I greet him "My parents came by."

"Hi." He stands up and hugs them both, then wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me close to him "Meet the little guy."

"Wow." My mom gasps, looking into the incubator "He's a tiny little thing."

"Two pounds, fourteen ounces." I tell her

"Wow." My dad agrees "You can't take him home with you tomorrow, can you?"

"No." I shake my head, then lean it against Robbie's chest "He's going to be here for a while."

"How long?"

"At least until his original due date, more than likely." Robbie sighs, rubbing my back "He has to be able to stay warm in an open crib by himself, take bottle feedings without his feeding tube, and breathe on his own."

"He needs to gain a little weight too." I tell them "But that will come when feeding gets easier for him. Hopefully we can hold him soon."

"You haven't held him yet?"

I shake my head.

"Oh sweetheart...I'm sorry, I can't even imagine."

"You can stick your hands through the holes in the incubator." I nod towards the openings "It's not even close to the same, but it's something."

"Would you mind if we...?"

"No, go ahead."

My mom sticks her hand in the opening closest to the baby's head, and my dad sticks his in the other.

"Say hi to Grandma and Grandpa, Leo." I whisper "If you let him, he'll probably grab your finger."

"Yeah." Robbie agrees "He likes to do that."

"He's beautiful." My mom says, I can see her start tearing up "Congratulations to both of you."

"Thank you." Robbie tells her "We're lucky to have him."


	31. Chapter 31

_Cat's POV_

I stare into Leo's incubator, listening to the steady beat of his heart rate monitor. He's not even doing anything, but I could sit here and watch him sleep for hours if I could.

"You ready to go?" Robbie rests a hand on my shoulder

"No." I whisper

I technically had been discharged from the hospital this morning, but Robbie hasn't taken me home yet. I don't want to go home yet.

"Come on, Cat..." He sighs "We talked about this."

Robbie is afraid I'll drive myself crazy if I stay at the hospital with Leo all day every day beginning now to the time he's discharged to go home, and he's probably right. But that doesn't stop me from wanting to stay.

There's overnight rooms available for all the parents if we choose to stay, but they're basically pull-out sleeper sofas. Robbie says he wants me sleeping at home, on a real mattress. But I don't want to leave Leo. We compromised and said that we'll _both_ stay over on Friday and Saturday nights, and all week nights, we'll both sleep at home. He'll drop me off at the hospital every day on his way to work, then come straight back as soon as he's finished his day and stay until normal visiting hours would be over. Then we'll both go home.

That's a lot of time to be spending here, and I still don't feel like it's enough.

"I just don't want to leave him alone..."

"He's not alone." Robbie assures me "There's a full team of doctors and nurses here 24/7 and there's twice as many on call. He's in good hands, he'll be okay."

I take a deep breath and remove my hand from the incubator, press a kiss to my fingertips, then rest it on Leo's arm.

"Goodnight, Leo." I whisper to him "I love you, see you in the morning."

"G'nite, buddy." Robbie leans down and says to him "We'll see you soon."

Robbie helps me to my feet, picks up my overnight bag and slings it over his shoulder, then wraps an arm around my waist, escorting me out of the NICU. I lean my head against his shoulder as we walk.

"I think somebody needs to go home and go to bed." He chuckles "You look exhausted."

"I _am_ exhausted." I yawn "I had a baby two days ago, you know."

"Yeah, I know." He smirks, kissing the top of my head "He's beautiful, just like his mom."

"I know he is." I smile "I just wish he could come home with us."

"Me too, baby. Me too."

* * *

"C'mere." Robbie scoops me up bridal style and carries me off the elevator

"Nooo." I whine "Let me walk."

"Nooo." He mimics my tone "Let me carry you. You're barely able to stay upright."

"Fine." I lean my head against his chest "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He tells me as he fumbles with his keys, trying to unlock the door

"You can put me down..."

"Nope." He pushes the door open and steps inside "I got it."

I have to admit, it's good to be home. Even just the familiar scent is comforting. But I'd still rather be with my baby.

"ARLO!" Robbie calls "WE'RE HOME BUD."

Arlo appears in the doorway of our bedroom. Once he recognizes us, he comes sprinting towards us.

"Arlo baby!" I shriek "Robbie, put me down!"

"OKay, okay." Robbie laughs, setting me down

I kneel down and Arlo jumps up on me, licking my face and smothering me in puppy dog kisses.

"Hi buddy!" I exclaim "Oh, I know! I missed you too! Did you take good care of the house for us?"

"Beck and Jade had him until this morning." Robbie tells me "He didn't really get the chance to destroy anything."

"That's good." I sigh, standing up "I think I'm gonna shower real quick before I go to bed, I smell like hospital."

"Whatever you need to do."

I start walking towards the bathroom, but stop when I pass Leo's nursery, leaning against the doorframe.

The only thing assembled is his crib. The cribs sheet and crib skirt are on, and the quilt is draped over the railing, but that's all the progress that we've made. Everything else is still sitting in it's box, untouched, or in the bag.

I should still be pregnant. Leo should still be safe inside of me, not laying in an incubator, in a cold hospital, covered in wires.

"This isn't right, Robbie." I say "It doesn't feel right without him."

"I know it doesn't." He wraps his arms around my waist "But we can't focus on the bad right now, we have to focus on the good. We have a beautiful baby boy, he's _alive_ , he's healthy-"

"He's covered in wires, Robbie."

"Because he's premature." He reminds me "Not because he's sick. He just needs a little help finishing his development is all."

"I...I want him home." I stutter, fighting back tears "I want us to be a family."

"Baby..." Robbie sighs as I turn and burry my face in his shirt "I want him here too...it'll all be okay."

"Are you sure?"

"I promise you, it will be."

"Okay."


	32. Chapter 32

_Cat's POV_

"I'll see you tonight." Robbie says as he puts the car in park in front of the children's hospital, near the doors closest to the NICU "Tell Leo I love him."

"I will." I smile, leaning over and kissing him "I love you, have a good day at work."

"Thanks." He tells me "Love you too."

I grab my purse off the floor of the car and open the door, stepping out onto the sidewalk. I slam the door behind me and wave to Robbie as he drives off. Then, I enter through the automatic doors, into the hospital. It has that sterile smell that all hospital has, but it feels more inviting, probably because it's a children's hospital. Everything is brightly colored, and there's cartoon characters everywhere. At times, it can be a bit much, but I know this is where my son will receive the best care available to him, so that makes it all okay.

I stop outside the doors to the maternity wing and press the buzzer to alert the nurses at the desk inside that there's someone that wants in.

"Hello?" A voice says through the voicebox

"Hi!" I respond "I'm here to visit my son in the NICU."

"Name?"

"Shapiro?"

"Come on in."

There's a buzzing sound and the door unlocks so I can open it. This is only the first step, I'll have to go through even more security like this once I'm inside.

I take a right down the first hallway and walk until I find the set of elevators that will take me to the floor I need. I hit the button and ride up to the third floor where the NICU is. I come to yet another desk. The nurse is friendly. I have to show ID to prove that I really _am_ Leo's mom, then she lets me back to the station where they take your temperature and make you wash your hands. Once I'm deemed ready to enter, I walk down another hallway, through the door that leads to the NICU nursery.

Silently, I move towards the back left corner of the room, towards Leo's incubator. There's a nurse examining him, I feel my heart start beating faster as I approach them.

What if something's wrong?

"Good morning." The nurse smiles "We're just checking to make sure everything is staying at a normal level. He looks good this morning."

"Glad to hear it." I nod "So everything is okay?"

"It's just fine." She assures me "He's right on track with where he should be. I'm Monica, by the way. I'm the nurse who looks after him from eight to four."

"Cat." I shake the hand she extended to me "I'm his mom."

"I figured." She laughs "He's been waiting to see you all morning, told me himself."

"Did he now?" I chuckle, leaning down to look into the incubator "Good morning, baby boy! How are you?"

He's awake and sucking on a pacifier, staring up at me with two, steel blue eyes that almost look like orbs.

"Look at those eyes." I grin "You might have mine, we'll have to see if they change color or not."

"Does your husband have brown eyes?" Monica asks

"Yeah." I nod

"He probably will then too." She tells me "It's the dominant eye color."

"You'll be perfect either way." I whisper to the baby "I'm gonna guess I'm not allowed to hold him yet, am I right?"

"Unfortunately." Monica sighs "We need to get him regulating his body temperature on his own first. But he's making progress there, so I wouldn't be surprised if you can sometime within the next week."

I feel my heart break.

I carried this little human around inside of me for seven months, I want to hold him.

"Alright."

"I need to go take a look at a few of his friends." She tells me "Let me know if you need anything. I'll be back to check on him in about forty-five minutes or so."

"Okay, thank you." I smile "Hey Leo. Daddy told me to tell you he loves you, he'll be here later, after he gets off of work."

I wouldn't be totally shocked if he couldn't even hear me. But I feel better when I talk to him, it makes me feel like we're establishing some sort of bond.

"I missed you last night." I tell him "You can ask Daddy. I had a really hard time sleeping, I couldn't stop thinking about you. I'll feel so much better when you're home with us."

I Set my purse down on the floor and sit down in the chair next to the incubator. His nurses have been bus, I see. There's a light blue cardstock sign on the end of the crib that says "LEO" in brown block letters, with a few clip art of cartoon monkeys. Cute, but not nearly enough to make this whole thing seem comfortable. I wish I was sitting at home on the couch, with him sleeping on my chest, Arlo curled up at our feet, watching TV together. Or sitting out on the balcony, watching the cars and busses pass by.

I stick my hands in through the openings in the incubator, one resting on his stomach, the other on the mattress, next to his head. I softly brush the palm of his hand with my index finger. He reaches his small fingertips around it and grabs on, bringing a smile to my face.

"Hi." I grin "I love you."

He stares at me, blinking, unable to comprehend what I'm saying, but that's okay. He knows I'm here.

"I'm always gonna love you." I tell him "No matter what, Mommy loves you."


	33. Chapter 33

_Robbie's POV_

"Rob!" John exclaims as I pass his cubicle and enter mine "Where have you been the past couple days? I was starting to get worried!"

"Do you even check your phone?" I ask him

"Funny story." He smirks "My phone is smashed, I'm waiting for a replacement from the company."

I sigh and roll my eyes. Only John.

"Cat had the baby." I tell him, shrugging my laptop bag off my shoulder, onto my desk

"I thought she wasn't due until July?" He raises an eyebrow at me

"She wasn't." I sigh "He came early."

"Way early!" My co-worker's eyes go wide "Is everything okay?"

"Well, he weighs just under three pounds, and he has a really hard time keeping his body temperature regulated on his own. So he's in an incubator." I explain "He needs respiratory support because his lungs aren't strong enough for him to breathe on his own yet-"

"So a breathing tube?"

"Yes." I nod "It goes in through his nose. And he can't coordinate sucking, swallowing, and breathing at the same time, so they have him on a feeding tube for the time being."

"Sounds rough."

"It is."

"How's Cat doing?"

"She's going insane because they won't let her hold him yet." I sigh "But she insists on being there with him as much as possible."

"Wait, why can't she hold him?"

"Because he can't regulate his own body temperature." I repeat "He needs to stay in the incubator where the temperature is at a safe, constant level. If we take him out before he's ready, there could be issues."

"I'm so sorry dude, that must really suck."

"Yeah." I agree "It really does. But he's going to be just fine, and that's what's important."

"What's his name?" John asks

"Leo." I smile "Leo Joel Shapiro."

"That's a strong name."

"A strong name for a strong little boy." I smirk

* * *

I find Cat in the same place I always do, sitting next to Leo's incubator, watching over him protectively. Not that I'd expect anything else.

"Hey." I smile as I approach her

"Hi." She stands up and kisses me "How was work?"

"It was okay." I shrug, sliding my arms around her waist "But I'd rather be here."

"I'd rather you be here too." She agrees, resting her head against my chest

"How's her doing?" I ask

"He's good." She whispers "He sleeps a lot. The nurse says it's because he's saving energy."

"Well he needs lots of energy so he can grow, develop, and get healthy so he can come home with us."

"I know...I know."

"Have you eaten anything yet?" I ask

"Not since lunch." She tells me "Why?"

"Come on." I set my laptop bag down next to the incubator and take her hand "Let's go to the cafeteria and find something for dinner."

"But what about Leo?"

"He'll be okay for forty-five minutes or so." I assure her "The nurses always take great care of him, you know that."

"Okay..." She sighs, allowing me to drag her away from the baby "We'll be back soon, Leo. I love you."

We walk hand-in-hand out of the NICU and towards the elevator that will take us to the basement where the cafeteria is.

I can tell Cat is exhausted just from the way she's walking. Her limp, which she usually tries so hard to hide and normally goes unnoticed by even me at times, is starting to show, and she's leaning either further to her right than normal.

"You're tired."

"No I'm not." She snaps

"Don't lie to me Cat." I tell her "I know you better than anybody, I can tell."

I know she wants to spend all her time with the baby, and that's fine. But she stays up all night worrying about him and doesn't get much sleep.

"I just want to make sure he's okay." She sighs, leaning against me while we wait for the elevator

"He _is_ okay, Cat." I assure her "This is the best NICU in the state. There's doctors and nurses here around the clock making sure he gets the best care possible. And on the off chance that something goes really wrong, they'll call us and we can be here in a heartbeat."

"I know that, I do." She shakes her head "It just kills me that I can't do anything to help him. I just want him to know that we care about him and that we love him more than anything else on this planet."

"He knows that." I kiss the top of her head "He's just not able to tell us that he knows. Believe me, he knows."

"Do you think he even knows I'm his mom?" She asks

"Of course he does." I assure her "He listened to your voice for seven months while you were pregnant, it was the first sound he ever heard. He can recognize it now. He knows my voice too. It's crazy how it all works, but it does."

The elevator arrives and we step inside of it. I hit the button to take us to the basement.

"I just can't help it." Cat yawns "I'm a natural worrier."

"I know you are." I tell her "What would you say to coming up after dinner, saying goodnight to Leo, and then going home for the night? I think you would benefit from a little bit of extra sleep."

"I really don't want to." She admits "Please, Robbie. Let's stay until nine. I'd feel so much better."

"Alright." I sigh "If you really want to stay that much, we can."

I want to spend some time with the baby too, of course. I don't see him nearly as much as Cat does.

"Thank you." She smiles "For letting us stay, and for being so worried about me."

"I'll never stop worrying about you." I chuckle "You know that."

"I know. That's one of the millions of reasons why I love you."

"I love you too, Cat."


	34. Chapter 34

_Cat's POV_

Today Leo is a week old, meaning we've been here in the NICU for seven full days that to me have felt like seven years. It's torture going home at night and not being able to take him with me. When I saw him for the first time, I never wanted to let him out of my sight ever again.

Which is why I can sit here for hours every day doing nothing but look at him. Sure, sometimes I'll read. I've brought my PearPad a few times and had that for entertainment, but usually Leo is all I need. Even when he's sleeping, I'm watching. Everything about him is just so perfect I never want to look away. I love him so much.

Tori said that she showed a picture of him to her students and that about seventy-five percent of her female students have fallen head over heels in love with him. They're disappointed that it's the end of the school year and they won't get to see new pictures of him every day, so I told her that one day maybe in the winter or early spring when he's big enough and healthy enough, I would bring him in to say hello to everyone. But that day is still so far away. I'm more concerned about getting him home first.

Even if we could bring him home today, we couldn't be ready. The apartment is _far_ from baby proofed, with the exception of the baby gate to keep Arlo out of the nursery. The nursery isn't ready yet either, none of the furniture is assembled aside from the crib. When Robbie and I get home every night, we go straight to bed. Then in the morning, we get up and leave right away again, so we haven't even had time to get ready. It makes me feel awful, we should've been more prepared in the first place.

From inside the incubator, Leo starts fussing. It's not like a normal baby's cry, but more low pitched and weaker. It's normally around the time he eats, so a nurse will probably be coming by soon to put his feeding tube in, but for the time being, it's my job to comfort him.

"Shhhh..." I whisper, reaching into the incubator with my right hand "You're okay, baby. We'll get you some food real soon, I promise."

He grabs onto my index finger like he usually does and it brings a smile to my face knowing my son can find comfort in even the smallest part of me.

"You're such a good boy, Leo." I tell him "You're the greatest."

"Sorry!" Monica rushes over to us "Chloe was having some issues with her breathing tube, but we got that taken care of so now we can work on getting this little boy fed."

Chloe is one of the other babies here in the NICU. I don't actually know where her crib is, but I know she's about a month older than Leo. I met her mom at the coffee machine a few days ago, she was very nice.

I hate watching the nurses put in Leo's feeding tube, maybe because I'm squeamish, or because I know that it's an uncomfortable process for him, but I have to look away until everything is over and my son is content again.

"How's he doing?" I ask Monica "Does everything look like it should?"

"From what I can tell, yes." She nods "I mean, we'll do a closer evaluation with his doctor this afternoon, but everything appears to be on track."

"Well that's good." I smile, sticking my hand back into the incubator so Leo can grab my finger again

"We might actually be able to move him into an open crib soon..." She says, looking at one of his monitors "We might have you hold him for a bit to see how he reacts being in the open air."

"Really?" I gasp "I could hold him?"

"Yup." She nods "I would be against your bare skin though. When babies have skin to skin contact with their mothers, it helps them regulate their body temperatures, which is what we want him to be able to do on his own."

"I could do that today?" I ask

"Probably." She nods "Not until after the doctor checks on him though."

"Well I'd want to wait for my husband anyways." I tell her "I want him to be here for this."

* * *

"Are you ready?" The nurse asks me

It's not Monica, but his evening nurse, Delilah.

"Yes." I not, grinning

It's about 7:30,nd I'm sitting in a recliner, in a private room off the NICU, wearing the yoga pants I came to the hospital in this morning and a sports bra. Robbie sits in a plastic hospital chair next to me, holding the t-shirt I had been wearing earlier.

"Okay." Delilah smiles, handing Leo to me "Be very, _very_ careful."

She helps me position him so he's resting on my chest, up against my bare skin. He's so small, I feel like making even one movement could shatter him into a million pieces.

He's warm, and he nuzzles his head right up to me, into the bottom of my neck.

"Hi Leo..." I whisper, tears forming in my eyes "Robbie..."

"Yeah?" Robbie smiles

"He's perfect." I laugh as tears start falling down my cheeks "Aren't you, bud?"

His eyes are only half open, because he's in the process of falling asleep, but I wear to god we make eye contact.

"Hi." I grin "Hi baby. I love you."

He probably thinks I'm an insane, crying, blubbering mess. But I'm just so happy to finally be holding him, to finally have this contact with him, I'm at a loss for words and I can't really do much else.

Carefully, I tilt my head down and press a kiss to the top of his head, just as he starts to close his eyes and drift off to sleep. I look up at Robbie an smile at him. He leans forward and kisses my temple, then I turn an rest my forehead against his.

"We're a family." I whisper to him

"Yeah." He smiles "We have been for a week now."

"But it feels real now." I tell him, rubbing Leo's back

"I know." He agrees "I love you guys.

"We love you too."

I know it's only a small step in a very long process, but just being able to hold my son and cuddle him up against my chest with my husband sitting right here next to us, feels like the greatest accomplishment in the word. One that maybe might able to compare to taking my first steps after my accident, or walking down the isle on my own. But I know there's so many more to come.


	35. Chapter 35

_Robbie's POV_

I'm able to sleep easier at night than Cat is, I guess I just became accustomed to constantly worrying about someone and still being able to sleep when she was in the hospital last year. However, at times, her constant tossing and turning will wake me up at night.

Like tonight.

"Cat..." I groan, shoving my face into my pillow "Go to sleep."

"I can't." She sighs "I'm worried about the baby."

"He's fine, babe." I assure her "If he wasn't, they would've called us. Just get some sleep."

"But-" She tries to argue back with me, but cuts herself off when she falls into a huge coughing fit.

"What the hell was that?" I ask, sitting up and turning on a light "Are you getting sick?"

"No." She looks away from me

"Cat."

"What?"

"Look at me."

"I'm fine."

"Look at me." I repeat

She sighs and turns her head so she's facing me.

Her eyes are puffy, and her nose is bright red like it's been chapped by using too many tissues.

"You're sick." I shake my head

"No I'm not!" She insists "It's just a little cold, I'm fine."

"The lack of sleep finally caught up with you." I tell her "Maybe that's a good thing, you have an excuse to stay home and get some rest now."

"Who's going to go sit with Leo?" She frowns, looking like she could cry "He can't be by himself all day!"

"You can't go see him." I sigh "You'll get him sick too. With his weak little immune system, catching a cold could be like a horrible case of the flu. You have to stay home a few days..."

"I know..." She cries "But I can't stand the thought of him laying in his incubator by himself all day without anybody else there. I feel so awful for letting this happen to myself, now I can't help him!"

She lays her head down in my lap and continues crying softly, breathing heavily through her mouth since her nose is congested.

"It's okay, Cat. It happens to everybody every once and a while..."

"But it happened at the worst possible time!"

"I know I've been telling you that you should be sleeping more, which you should, but it shows how much you really love him, that you're so worried." I brush a few locks of dark brown hair out of her face "And if it will make you more comfortable staying home, I'll take the day off of work tomorrow and go up to the hospital and sit with him. But only if you agree to get some rest, okay?"

"Okay..." She whispers "But I won't be happy about it."

"I know you won't be." I smile "Just for a day or two though, then when you're all better you can go see him again. That's one hell of an incentive, isn't it?"

"Yeah." She nods

"Yeah." I lean down and kiss her forehead "Now let me up, I'm gonna go get you some cold medicine. Maybe it'll even help you sleep too."

* * *

"Hey buddy..." I whisper to my son

He's fast asleep in his incubator, his chest rising and falling steadily with the assistance of his breathing tube.

I shrug my laptop bag off my shoulder and set it down next to the plastic chair I find myself occupying every night from the time I get here, until around 9:00 when Cat and I usually leave. But today, I'll be here all day.

Cat was out cold when I left this morning, I didn't want to wake her up, seeing as she was probably getting the best sleep she's gotten in the week and a half or so since Leo has been born. I can't blame her for wanting to spend every waking hour of the day with him, and for feeling guilty when she has to leave him alone, I felt the same way when I had to leave her when she was in the hospital last year. And now...our son is too.

But just like his mother, he's still perfect in everyway. Despite the fact that he only weighs about three pounds, six ounces right now. Despite the fact that he can wear our wedding rings like bracelets or anklets. Despite the fact that he can't breathe or eat on his own. Despite the fact that he can't regulate his body temperature like he should. Despite the fact he wanted to be so early...he's still perfect.

He's only two weeks old, and thirty-eight weeks gestation, so almost every part of him is still developing in some way, but when I look at him, I can't help but see little pieces of Cat and me in him. I see the same nose that I see on my face everyday when I look into the mirror. The few times that I've seen his eyes open, I see the beautiful, round eyes I got lost in the first time I met his mom, that I dried the tears from when her accident left her feeling like there was no hope left for her, and that I looked into and said 'I do' on the day I married her. Right now, they're a deep, dark blue, like all babies have when they're first born. But one day, in a few months, I hope they turn a dark, chocolate brown, just like hers.

"How's it goin' today?" I ask the baby as I sit down

He's still fast asleep, but I'm still going to talk to him so my voice becomes even more familiar to him.

"Mommy's sick." I tell him "But she wanted me to tell you that she loves you very much, and that she' going to get better as _fast_ as she can so she can come back here and be with you. But until then, it's just us guys for a while."

I pull my laptop out of my bag and turn it on so it will start powering up and I can start working on getting some of the stuff I had needed to get done at work today.

"You know, Leo..." I say as the screen lights up "I love you so much. I can't wait until you're a little bigger and I can start doing all the fun father-son stuff my dad, your grandpa, and I did when I was a kid. I just want you to know, you don't have to be an athlete, you don't have to be a performer, you just have to do what will make you happy, okay? That's all Mom and I care about."

I reach my hand into the incubator and brush my index finger over his open palm that's resting next to his head. He jerks a little, then wraps all of his fingers around mine, and a smile spreads across my face.

"I love you, Leo."


	36. Chapter 36

_Cat's POV_

Something wet brushes across my face, and then does again.

I open my eyes slowly to find myself eye to eye with Arlo, who was licking my face to wake me up.

"Hi, Puppy." I smile "Did Daddy already leave? ROBBIE?"

When there's no answer, I assume he has.

I sit up and throw the blankets off my legs. I still feel like crap, but not nearly as awful as I did last night. I think the medicine and actually sleeping well for once did a great deal for me.

"Come on, bud." I whistle to Arlo when I reach the doorway

He perks up and hops off the bed, following me into the main part of the apartment.

I wander into the kitchen to find something to eat and the first thing I see is a note pinned to the fridge with a magnet.

 _Good Morning, Beautiful_ It reads.

 _I already walked Arlo this morning, so you won't have to worry about him peeing anywhere today. I also made him promise to be on his best behavior before I left, so feel free to give him a hard time if he isn't._

 _Please, please, please, PLEASE try and get as much rest as you can today, okay? Leo and I will be alright, so please try not to worry about us TOO much. I'll text you updates every time the nurses check on him._

 _I hope you start feeling better real soon._

 _I love you more than anything._

 _-Robbie_

"Sap." I smirk, setting the note down on the counter and opening the cabinet to grab a box of cereal.

* * *

After breakfast, I take a long, hot, very well-deserved shower and change into a pair of sweatpants and a tank top. I take some more cold medicine, then head to the nursery.

I know that Robbie said I should try and get some rest today, but I'm afraid I'll grow restless if I don't do _something_. I spent about a month and a half on bed rest, I don't want to do anymore time.

Leo's crib is assembled and sitting in the front left corner of his room. The crib skirt is on, the mattress sheet is on, and the quilt is draped over the railing just like it should be. But that's the only thing in her at the moment that actually makes it look like a baby's room. Everything else is still in it's box or it's original packaging.

I wander over to the box that holds the swing and sit down next to it. There's a picture of a smiling baby sitting in the swing as his mother watches from the side. It shouldn't be too hard to figure out.

I pick at the tape with my nails, then tear the box open, letting the contents fall onto the floor. After sorting through the pieces, I find that there aren't any instructions.

"Shit." I mutter

I might need backup for this. As much as I'd like to think I can do this on my own, I'm not exactly the handiest person in the world.

I pull my phone out of the pocket of my sweatpants, dial a number and press the phone to my ear.

"Hello?" A familiar voice picks up after three rings

"Hi Daddy..." I sigh "Are you working today?"

"No, not today. I'm off." He tells me "Why? Is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine!" I assure him "It's just...I kinda need your help."

"I'm on my way."

* * *

"Have you gotten to hold him yet?" My dad asks, tightening a screw on the rocking chair

"Yeah." I smile "A few days ago. They wanted him to have some skin to skin time, so I got to hold him for like an hour. But then his temperature got a little too low and he had to go back in the incubator."

"But you got to hold him."

"Yeah." I grin, folding up a pair of footed pajamas and placing them in one of the drawers beneath the changing table "It was so surreal. Like, I knew I had a baby, and I had been staring at him for about a week, but the second the nurse gave him to me, it finally felt _really_ real, you know? Like, 'this is my son, I made this', it was the most amazing feeling."

"I can still remember the first time I held you." He tells me

"Really?"

"Yup." He nods "Your mom's arms were shaking because she had been pushing so hard, and she was afraid she'd drop you, so I held you for the first twenty minutes or so. I'll never forget, I tried to adjust your blanket and you reached up and grabbed my finger, we made eye contact. You're right, it really is the most amazing feeling. I just can't believe you're old enough to be experiencing it yourself."

"Me either." I admit "I don't think I'll ever get used to the fact that I'm someone's mom."

"Being a parent is the best job you'll ever have, kiddo." He winks "Trust me."

"I'd agree with you so far." I smile "He's the most perfect little boy."

"He gets that from his mom." He chuckles "She's the mot perfect little girl."

"Daddy..." I blush

"HEY!" Robbie calls, walking in the front door "I'm home!"

"We're in here!" I call back

"We?" He pokes his head in the door "Oh! Hey Paul! Wow, looks like you two have been busy in here."

"I couldn't stand that it wasn't ready for him yet." I sigh "I tried to put the swing together, and I failed miserably. So I called Dad."

"Thank you." Robbie thanks him "This means a lot."

"Anything for my favorite daughter and son-in-law." My dad smiles "And for my favorite grandson. I think you'll be able to take it from here though."

"Thank you, Daddy." I smile, giving him a hug

My dad says goodbye to us both and after we promise to say hello to Leo for him, he leaves.

"How was the hospital?" I ask Robbie

"Good." He shrugs "Leo hasn't made any new progress, but he hasn't gone backwards either."

"That's good..."

"They let me hold him for a bit..." He smirks "While they were changing the blankets in his incubator."

"Isn't it the most amazing thing in the whole world?" I grin

"Yeah." He smiles "When he looked up at me, and he grabbed my finger I was...I'll be hooked for the rest of my life."

"We're in so much trouble..." I laugh "That boy has us both wrapped around his finger."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing..." Robbie says, wrapping an arm around my shoulders "But come on, let's get you to bed. We want you to get rid of that cold for good so you can visit him again."

"Are you gonna take the day off tomorrow too?" I ask

"Yeah." He nods "I mean, this is the reason I have sick days, right? So I can use 'em when I need to. And I would say sitting at the hospital with my son is a justifiable reason."

"I would say so." I agree "Just be careful though, don't blow through them. Or we won't have them when we need them."

"It'll be hard not to." He sighs "I love spending time with that little guy."


	37. Chapter 37

_Robbie's POV_

A loud ringing fills the bedroom as my phone starts vibrating on my bedside table. I roll over, fumbling with the device, my eyes still full of sleep, and swipe my finger across the screen to silence it. Even though I'm not going to work today, I know it's not a good idea for me to change my sleep patterns, so I still wake up like I'm going into the office anyway.

I swing my feet over the side of the bed, yawning as I stretch my arms, trying to wake myself up. Cat groans softly in bed next to me.

"Shhh..." I whisper to her "It's just me, go back to sleep."

"Kay..." She mutters

I grab the clothes that I laid out last night and slowly make my way to the bathroom to shower. Normally, I would return to our bedroom to get dressed, but I don't want to wake Cat again, she needs her rest.

As I enter the main part of the apartment, Arlo approaches and jumps up on me, resting his paws on my thighs.

"Just a minute, let me shower." I tell him "Then we'll go for a walk."

Once I'm sure that he won't wake Cat, I enter the bathroom, strip out of my pajamas, and step into the shower. The warm water is relaxing as it sprays my face and runs down my back. Temporarily, I forget about the stress of the world. Eventually, though, the water starts to turn cool, and I figure I should leave some hot water for Cat to shower when she wakes up. An angry wife is _not_ something I want to be dealing with.

I step out and dry myself off, pulling on a pair of jeans and my navy blue 'World's Greatest Dad' t-shirt Cat had gotten me when she told me she was pregnant. I figured that now that I _really_ am a dad, I should wear it, even if the part about me being the 'greatest' is a lie. It still hasn't set in yet.

 _I'm a dad._

 _Cat's a mom._

 _We have a son._

 _We're a family._

Not that we weren't a family before, her, Arlo, and I. But now it's real. There's another human depending on both of us to take care of him. The more I think about it, the more it scares me. I mean, I'm 23, almost 24. Not a lot of people are even _married_ by my age, let alone married with a _baby_. I love Cat, and I don't regret anything, being married to her makes me happier than I ever thought I could be. _But are we ready for this_? Of course we are. I should stop second guessing myself.

 _We are ready, aren't we_?

After I'm dressed, I clip Arlo's leash onto his collar and walk him down the block and back. Normally, I would keep him out a bit longer, but the commute to the hospital is longer than the one to my office downtown, and I want to spend as much time as possible with Leo today. I love spending time with him.

"Don't wake Mommy up today, please." I tell Arlo when we get back to the apartment "She's tired, you need to let her sleep."

Arlo cocks his head to the side, then wanders away, as if to ignore me.

"Yeah yeah, I know." I sigh "You only listen to Mom. Whatever, just be good, okay? Okay."

I grab a piece of paper out of a drawer in the kitchen and scribble down a quick note for Cat, pinning it to the fridge just like I did the day before.

 _Good Morning,_

 _Hope you slept well, and that you're feeling loads better._

 _Arlo is taken care of for the day, so he shouldn't give you too much trouble. Then again, he's Arlo. But he tends to behave for you, so hopefully he sticks to that._

 _I'll tell Leo hello for you, he missed you yesterday, I could tell. But if everything goes right you'll be back tomorrow (Not that I'll mind spending an extra day with him if you need it)._

 _See you when I get home later._

 _Love you lots,_

 _Robbie_

* * *

"Robbie!" Phil, our building's landlord, stops me as I make my way to the elevator later that night

"Hey, Phil." I greet him "How are you?"

"I'm good, how are you?"

"Can't complain." I shrug "What's up?"

"My wife tells me that you and Cat just welcomed a little baby boy." He smiles "Congratulations!"

"Thank you." I grin "His name is Leo, he's almost two weeks old."

"Leo." Phil repeats, nodding "A good strong name."

"For a strong little boy." I agree "He was nine weeks premature."

"Oh wow." He gasps "An impatient little guy, huh?"

"Very impatient." I chuckle "But he's doing good, so we're thankful."

"As you should be." He clasps a hand on my shoulder "Well, if there's anything you guys need, just let me know."

"Thanks Phil." I smile, pressing the 'up' button for the elevator "That means a lot."

"I've got you're back." He assures me

We say goodbye and I ride the elevator up to our floor, fishing my keys out of my pocket as I step out of the car.

When I enter the apartment, Arlo runs up to me and greets me like he does every night.

"Hey there." I whisper, taking notice of the dark apartment

Well, dark except for the glow of the TV. I walk over to the couch to find Cat curled up under a blanket, fast asleep, Some Lifetime movie is playing on the TV, and a bowl of half eaten popcorn sits on the coffee table in front of her.

Smiling, I set my laptop bag down and slide my hands underneath her, picking her up bridal style.

"How's the baby?" She murmurs, cuddling up against my chest

"He's good." I say, kissing her forehead "He told me he misses you."

"He did?" She smirks, eyes still closed

"Yeah." I smile "How are you feeling?"

"A lot better." She tells me "Can I go to the hospital tomorrow?"

"Are you going to get Leo sick?" I ask "Or any of the other babies?"

"No, I promise."

I enter the bedroom and lay her down on her side of the bed, pulling a sheet up over her body.

"Then of course you can." I tell her

"I miss him so much." She sighs

"I bet. But you should get some sleep so you're one hundred percent recharged for him tomorrow."

"Okay." She smiles "I love you."

"I love you too." I press a kiss to her lips "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."


	38. Chapter 38

_Cat's POV_

I'm rudely awoken when Robbie's phone starts vibrating and making noise on his bedside table.

It's not his alarm, so I know it's a phone call. It's his default ringtone too, not one that's been assigned to a specific contact, so I know it's not someone who calls him regularly.

"Hello?" He answers "Yes. This is Robert Shapiro."

I sit up and flip on the lamp on my bedside table. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I glance at the clock. It's 3:28 am.

 _Who on earth would be calling us in the middle of the night?_

"Robbie, who is it?" I yawn

He holds his hand up, signaling for me to stop talking, while he listens intently to whoever is on the other end of the phone call.

"Well is he okay now?" Robbie asks

My heart drops into my stomach.

 _Leo._

"Robbie what's wrong?"

"Just a second." He whispers "No, yes of course. We'll be there as soon as possible. Thank you for calling."

"What's wrong?" I repeat as soon as he hangs up

"They tried to take Leo off his breathing tube..." He sighs as he stands up

"And?"

I don't know why I asked, something obviously went wrong.

"Didn't work." He shakes his head "He had a little apnea incident."

"Robbie I'm too tired for this, explain please." I tell him, standing up and looking for a more hospital appropriate outfit other than a pair of soffee shorts and a camisole

"It just means he stopped breathing and his heart rate slowed down a little bit." He explains

"How on earth could you be calm about this?" I snap "Our son stopped breathing?!"

I feel a rush of panic fall over me.

 _Leo almost died._

 _He stopped breathing._

 _He could've died._

 _I almost lost my son._

 _We already lost one baby, we could've lost Leo too._

I cover my face with my hands as tears start to leak from my eyes, my chest shaking as I breathe.

"Cat." Robbie rushes over to me and wraps me in his arms "He's okay. He started breathing again and now he's back on his breathing tube until further noticed. Shhh...he's okay. It's okay."

"Robbie we could've lost him." I cry into his chest "We already lost his twin, we could've lost him too."

"But we didn't..." He reminds me "But we didn't, he's safe now, it's okay. Everything is alright now."

"I wanna go see him." I mumble into his chest "Please, Robbie. We have to see him."

"I know we do, we're gonna go right now, okay?"

"Okay." I squeak "Let's go."

* * *

"Oh Leo..." I sigh, leaning my head against the incubator "You have no idea how much trouble you've caused tonight."

He's fast asleep, he can't even hear me. Not that it matters though, all that matters is that he's safe.

I know this is a small scare, compared to what some of the other parents here have experienced, and I'm glad it wasn't something worse. But I never want to have to feel like anything even close to this ever again.

"Yeah little guy." Robbie agrees "You almost gave your mom and I a heart attack."

"Not cool, bud." I chuckle "Whatever, as long as you're okay now. But please, don't do anything like that ever again. I know you can't help it but-"

"He gets it." Robbie says

I sigh and rest my forehead against the top of the incubator again.

Four pounds, three ounces...and he causes so much trouble.

"When do you think they'll let us bring him home?" I ask Robbie

"Not soon enough." Robbie sighs

"Actually, though..."

"After this incident, I don't think it will be anytime soon." He tells me "I mean, he still technically shouldn't be born for another six weeks still."

"Stupid apnea." I mumble

"Come on, Cat. It's not his fault."

"It's Cyrus Hill's fault." I roll my eyes "If it wasn't for him, we never would've gotten in that stupid accident, I wouldn't have a fucked up back, and I would've been able to carry him to term. Hell, who knows? Maybe I could've carried both babies to term..."

"Well yeah, maybe. But you can't look at it like that..." He tells me "Maybe we wouldn't have gotten married so soon if that accident hadn't made us realize how impossible it would be to live without one another...then we wouldn't have gone to Paris, maybe you wouldn't have gotten pregnant, and maybe we wouldn't even have Leo at all..."

"Yeah...I guess you're right." I sigh "I just...I can't take this. I want to take him home."

"He needs to stay here a little bit longer...hopefully not much longer, but a little bit longer."

"Can we stay here overnight?" I ask "I don't want to leave him..."

"I still have to go to work in the morning..." Robbie reminds me

He's right. And he's already missed two days to stay with Leo because I was sick, and I don't like sleeping alone, I'm more likely to have a nightmare then.

"Alright..." I sigh "Goodnight, baby boy. We love you, get some sleep."

"G'nite buddy." Robbie whispers "I'll see you after work."

"And I'll see you in a couple hours, I guess..."


	39. Chapter 39

_Cat's POV_

"Hi Leo." I smile "Who's a happy boy?"

"Be careful of his breathing tube." Monica warns

"Okay." I nod

Today, Monica agreed to let _me_ give Leo his sponge bath. I'm so happy to have another opportunity to bond with him, especially because I might get to hold him when we're done.

I rub the wet washcloth against his upper arm and Leo immediately begins to fuss, making the lower pitched crying sound that most preemies do.

"Oh baby..." I coo "It's fine, just a little water. Don't worry, we're almost done."

"He's been a little fussy like this all morning." Monica tells me "It's nothing you're doing."

I sort of wish she wasn't standing here, watching over my shoulder while I bathe my son, but I know she's just doing her job.

"Why are we so cranky Leo?" I ask him as I finish up washing his arms "Did you not sleep good huh? Or are we just being moody today?"

"He's probably just cold." Monica tells me "He doesn't like being out of his incubator."

"When will he get moved into an open crib?" I ask

"Sometime within the next few days." She informs me "Which is actually going to be a huge step forward for him."

"Good for you, Leo!' I cheer, leaning down and planting a kiss on my son's forehead

That's maybe the second or third time I've _ever_ kissed him and he's almost a month old.

"We should probably get him dried off..." Monica suggests

"Yeah." I agree, wrapping the towel around the baby and beginning to wipe off the excess water "Can I..."

"Yeah." Monica smiles "You can pick him up."

"Thanks." I blush, sliding my hand under the baby's head and lifting him into my arms "Hey bud."

Leo still continues to fuss.

"Shhh..." I bounce him a little "You're okay. I know you're cold, I know."

"Here." Monica hands me his pacifier "Try this."

"Here you go, bud." I slide the pacifier into his mouth and he calms down a little bit, staring up at me with two big blue eyes "Better?"

The pacifier takes up almost his entire face, and I can't get over just how cute he looks.

"Yeah..." I grin "That's better, isn't it?"

* * *

"He's gotten bigger since the last time I saw him." Tori observes, leaning down and looking into the incubator

She's been done teaching for the summer for a few weeks now, and just got done with all of her teacher institutes. She asked if she could come up and visit with Leo, and I said of course. I enjoy having company up here with me during the day.

"Yeah. He's a whole whopping four pounds now." I laugh "Leo! Aunt Tori is here, say hi!"

"Wouldn't you just die if he actually said hello." Tori smirks, standing upright again "Hey buddy, it's good to see you."

"He's been cranky today..." I sigh "So he might not be all that interesting."

"Well he's a baby, Cat. They don't really do much to begin with." She chuckles "How about you? How are you holding up?"

"Okay." I shrug "I'm getting a little sick of his hospital, but I want him to be healthy so I manage. Everybody here is really nice so that helps too. They let me hold him this morning after his bath, and I get to do some more skin to skin therapy with him tonight."

"What's that?"

"When his bare skin makes contact with my bare skin it helps him regulate his body temperature." I tell her "But we won't need that as much once they move him to an open crib, which will be soon apparently."

"Oh that's exciting!" Tori smiles "You'll be able to hold him whenever you want then, right?"

"Yeah." I nod "And so will Robbie."

"Has he gotten to hold him at all yet?"

"Apparently once back when I was sick, but not since then." I shake my head "So he'll be excited to hear about it when he gets here tonight."

"I bet. So..."

"So?" I raise an eyebrow at her

"What's gonna happen when you go back to work?"

"Honestly?" I sigh "I'm not so sure I am gonna go back to work, at least not anytime in the near future."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I can't leave Leo right now, and my company knows that and they're willing to work with me to switch up my hours to make them more flexible." I explain "But when he's out of the hospital, someone is going to have to take care of him, like, I can't bring him to work with me. So Robbie and I have started looking into childcare and stuff like that, and I really don't make that much to begin with. Basically my entire paycheck would be going towards paying for childcare, so we're wondering if it might be better for me to just stay home with him until he's old enough to go to school, then find something where I could work while he's in school, then still be able to pick him up and drop him off. I don't know, we're still discussing it."

"Sounds like a pretty sweet deal if you ask me." Tori laughs "Stay home and play with the baby all day?"

"I'd be a stay at home mom by 23."

"So?"

"I don't know." I sigh "I just want to focus on getting him out of here. I wanna take him home with me."


	40. Chapter 40

_Cat's POV_

"Look at you Leo!" I grin "You've got a big boy crib now!"

The baby looks around the room, wide-eyed as he observes his new surroundings. They moved him from an incubator to an open-air crib this morning, meaning as long as he can keep his body temperature stabilized at a healthy temperature, he won't need the incubator anymore.

"I know." I giggle, letting him grab onto my finger "There's so much to look at, isn't there?"

Now that he can regulate his temperatures on his own, or at least in theory he can, the next step will be to get him feeding from a bottle instead of a tube. We're going to try that tomorrow so we don't overwhelm him, but for now, the nurses want his pacifier in his mouth as much as possible so he can practice sucking on something.

He's too big now to have a preemie pacifier, but too small for the normal sized pacifier to not look funny. Like I said, it takes up almost his entire face and makes his eyes look so much bigger than they actually are, but it only makes him look even cuter than he already is.

Because he's in an open crib now too, the nurses have started dressing him in more than just a diaper. Today he's sporting a cute little white, long-sleeve onesie that says "Mommy's Little Peanut", which made my heart melt. He also has a pair of white blue socks on, but they were made for newborns, and are way too big, so he can easily kick them off. I'm constantly putting them back on.

"You're a cute little guy, you know." I smile "I know you know, I tell you everyday."

I slide my hands under his body and carefully lift him out of his crib, being extremely cautious of his breathing tube that's still inserted into his nose. I slowly sit down in the chair next to the crib and cradle him in my arms.

"You've got even more to look at now." I tell him "It's a whole different view from over here."

He coughs and spits his pacifier out. Luckily, I catch it and am able to immediately put it right back in his mouth.

He has his Daddy's nose, it's so cute and small I want to pinch it right off. I think his eyes might be mine, Robbie says they are. But I don't see my eyes as often as he does, so it's still hard for me to tell. The hair on the top of his head, which just looked like fuzz when he was fist born, now actually _looks_ like hair, but it's bone straight, which confuses me, because Robbie and I both have hair that's extremely curly naturally, his more than mine. Monica says it's normal, that it will probably become curlier as he gets older. It's dark brown though, just like mine. But Monica tells me that could change too, it could possibly get lighter, but I don't see that happening.

"Hey." Robbie whispers, walking over to the crib

"Hi." I smile "Look Leo, Daddy's here!"

"Hey little man." He greets the baby "I see they finally let him out."

"Kinda." I laugh as he leans down and plants a kiss on my lips "How was work?"

"I would've much rather been here with you guys." He tells me "So, can you hold him whenever you want now?"

"Yeah." I grin "And so can you. Wanna take your turn?"

"In a second." He shrugs his laptop bag off his shoulder and onto the floor "I wanna give you something first."

"What is it?" I ask

"I dunno." He smirks "Close your eyes."

"Okay." I close them "But if Leo starts crying, I'm opening them."

"Okay." He laughs "Leo, please don't cry. You'll ruin Mommy's surprise."

"He shouldn't." I tell him "He's been pretty mellow today."

I can sense Robbie step behind me, and I feel him drape something around my neck. It's a necklace, it has to be.

"Okay." He says "You can open."

"Okay."

I open my eyes and see that I'm right, it _is_ a necklace.

It's a simple silver disc on a silver chain, an emerald hangs in front of the disc, covering most of it, but along the edge of the disc 'Leo Joel' is engraved in black script.

"Oh Robbie." I gasp "It's beautiful."

"You like it?" A kneels down next to my chair

"I love it." I lean down and kiss him "I'm never going to take I off."

"Good, I'm glad." He chuckles "You can add more discs to it too, if you want. They'll use different names and different birthstones. So maybe one ay, if we ever have more, we can add onto it."

"Okay." I smile "Do you wanna hold your son now?"

"Yes please." He grins

I stand up and Robbie takes my place in the chair. Then, I very carefully pass the baby to him, holding my breath the entire time, nervous about dropping him. Thankfully, I don't, and he's resting peacefully again in Robbie's arms in a matter of seconds.

"Hey Leo, how's it goin'?" Robbie coos to the baby "He's got your eyes, Cat. I know you say it's hard for you to see it, but they're yours. And if they end up turning brown, they'll be carbon copies."

"I believe you." I smile, touching a hand to my new necklace "His nose is yours though."

"Yeah, I know."

I want to tell him how much I love him, and how lucky I am to have two such perfect men in my life (well, I guess three if you count Arlo, but he's not here right now). But I'm afraid if I open my mouth, I'll start crying tears of happiness. The sight of my husband holing our son is just too emotionally overwhelming. I'm so incredibly lucky to have them.


	41. Chapter 41

"Good job, Peanut." I lean down and kiss Leo's forehead "You're doing so great."

"He really is." Monica agrees "Given this is his first real attempt at it."

Babies don't learn how to coordinate sucking, swallowing, and breathing all at the same time up until just a few weeks before they're born. That is, if they're full term of course. Since Leo wasn't, he was on a feeding tube for about the first month of his life. Now that he's out of his incubator, the nurses want to work on switching him to bottle feeding. It won't be an easy task, since he's so used to his feeding tube, but Monica says it's not impossible. An occupational therapist has been working on the whole sucking thing with him for a dew days. They told me that since he seems to like his pacifier so much, the transition to the baby bottle shouldn't be too difficult for him.

They were right, apparently, because Leo has been sucking away at his cute little preemie sized baby bottle for about ten minutes now. He's going to get half of his food from a bottle, and the other half from a feeding tube. Slowly, they'll start to wean him off the tube until all of his food is coming orally. After that, he just needs to prove that he can breathe entirely on his own, then we'll be allowed to take him home. It's a day I hope comes very soon.

Leo spits the nipple of the bottle out and coughs up a bit of the formula, a frustrated and upset look on his face.

"Aw, it's okay Leo." Monica tells him, taking the bottle from me "You can be done now, you did such a good job!"

"Yes you did!" I smile, shifting him in my arms a bit

I grab the burp rag that had been draped over my leg and wipe the excess formula off his face, then drape it over my shoulder. I bring Leo up and pat his back lightly to release any gas that might have built up while I was feeding him. I'm extremely cautious not to hit too hard so I don't injure his tiny, fragile little frame.

"You're a natural." Monica tells me

"I have no idea how." I admit "He's the first baby I've held since high school. And even then, it wasn't a real baby. It was one of those plastic, life-like simulators they make you take care of for health class."

"Those are the best kind of birth control." Monica laughs "For teenagers at least."

"Yeah." I agree

"I'm gonna go get rid of this." She holds up the almost empty bottle "You can keep him out if you want. I've got some other babies to check up on, but if you need anything, hit the button."

"Okay." I smile "Thank you."

Of course, I don't put Leo back in his crib. After almost a month of staring at him through a plastic incubator, I want to hold him as much as possible. I pick him up right away when I get here every morning, and the only time I ever put him down is when I leave the NICU to eat or go to the bathroom. Of course, I let Robbie hold him when he gets here in the evening, but up until that point, he's all mine. I'm trying to make up for the time I lost, and to be honest, I'd hold him for the rest of my life if it was possible.

In my arms, Leo begins to fuss, tugging at the breathing tube inserted through his nose.

"Oh no no, baby." I move his tiny little hands away "Don't play with that."

That only makes him angrier and he tries to pull it out again. He's not nearly strong enough to even move it slightly, but he still makes me nervous.

"Leo Joel." I sigh "That's not something you wanna mess with."

It's not his fault, he doesn't understand that the tube is a lifeline for him. I can't be angry, no matter how nervous it makes me.

"I know it sucks, Peanut, I know it does." I coo, bouncing him in my arms a little in a slight attempt to comfort him "Mommy had one of those once, too. About a year ago. Me and Daddy were in a really bad car accident. We both got hurt, but I had to stay in the hospital just like you do. But I was in the grown-up part. It wasn't a very fun place. I had a breathing tube just like yours, so I get it. You don't wanna be here. Daddy and I don't want you here, but it's only for a little while longer, alright bud? Just a little bit longer..."

I pick his hand up and press a kiss to the center of his palm and smile at him. He's calmed down some, but he still looks agitated. Who could blame him? He just drank three quarters of a bottle on his first try, that's a lot of work for a little guy like him. Plus, he's got a plastic tube shoved up his nose, I'd be a little cranky too if I were him.

"I promise it'll all be okay soon, Leo." I tell him "Just wait until you go home! Daddy and I will be there all the time! Well, I will be, Daddy will still go to work, but you'll get to see him in the morning too! How cool is that? And you have you're own room! You don't have to share with other babies. It's blue, and there's whales all over your sheets. We have a puppy too! Well, I guess he's more of a doggie. But he's a little doggie so I'm allowed to call him a puppy. His name is Arlo, he's very excited to meet you. I think he's been wondering what exactly we did to the spare room he used to get to play in."

I smile down at the baby, in hopes that hearing my voice has helped calm him down a bit. Talking to him always makes me feel better, so I hope it goes both ways.

"I love you, Leo." I grin "I know I tell you that all the time, but I do. Daddy and I can't wait to have you home with us."


	42. Chapter 42

_Cat's POV_

"Oh I know, Little Man." I coo as Leo's shrill high-pitched cry fills the NICU "Shhh...I know baby, it sucks."

Delilah is currently drawing a blood sample from him, just so the doctors can check up and make sure everything is like it's supposed to be.

I really _really_ wish they could do it another way, because hearing him cry and knowing there's nothing I can really do to help him literally tears me apart on the inside. But I know it's for his own good, so I try to handle it the best that I can.

"Don't worry Leo..." Delilah tries her best to soothe my screaming son "You're all done now! You did so good!"

She places a small bandage over the spot where she stuck the needle, making Leo even angrier because the skin around it is probably still sore, and he didn't want it to be touched.

"Can I pick him up now?" I ask

"Of course."

I reach down into Leo's crib and carefully pick him up, cradling him in my arms. He's still fussing, face bright red and scrunched up, making the familiar high-pitched, shrieking sound he does when he cries.

"It's all done, baby!" I exclaim, rocking him back and forth gently "No more needles!"

Unfortunately, this doesn't help us any and the baby continues to throw his tantrum.

"Oh..." I frown "Leo..."

I hug him a little closer to my chest and continue swaying back and forth, in hopes that he'll start to calm down soon.

" _Somewhere over the rainbow...Way up high_..." I sing softly to him " _And the dreams that you dreamed of, Once in a lullaby...Somewhere over the rainbow_  
 _Blue birds fly, And the dreams that you dreamed of, Dreams really do come true...Someday I'll wish upon a star, Wake up where the clouds are far behind me, Where trouble melts like lemon drops, High above the chimney top, That's where you'll find me_..."

I look down at the baby in my arms, smiling to myself when I realize my singing was able to calm him enough so he would stop crying. Now, he looks up at me with two deep blue eyes, a confused, yet precious look on his face.

"See?" I smirk "You're fine. Everything's all better!"

"What's all better?" Robbie asks, approaching us

"He had to get blood drawn..." I explain "It wasn't pretty."

"Oh, did someone cry?" Robbie coos, shrugging his laptop bag off and taking the baby from me "Hey Lil' guy, how's it goin'?"

"Better now that Daddy's here!" I say in a baby voice "Hi. How was work?"

"Work was good." He turns and kisses me quickly "But we gotta get going soon, okay? We don't want to miss our dinner reservation."

"What dinner reservation?"

"Surprise!" He grins "We've got forty-five minutes."

"Robbie!" I sigh "You know I won't leave him my himself if we can avoid it! Who's gonna sit with him?"

"We will." A voice says from behind me

I turn to see Tori and Andre, approaching Leo's crib from the door of the NICU.

"Oh I don't know..." I admit

I barely even trust _myself_ with Leo, I don't know how I'd feel leaving him with someone else besides the nurses.

"He's gonna fall asleep in an hour or so..." Robbie reminds me "All they have to do is sit with him, he'll be fine."

"Yeah, he'll be fine." Andre assures me "Come on, Cat. Let me earn my god daddy stripes!"

"I don't have anything to wear." I insist

"There's a bag of clothes for you in Robbie's car." Tori tells me "He had me pick something out for you. Come on, just go out and have a good time. The past few weeks you've had, you deserve it."

"You're not gonna let me say no, are you?" I look at Robbie

"No." He shakes his head

"Alright." I sigh "Fine, let's go."

* * *

"Admit it." Robbie smirks at me from across the table "It's nice to be out somewhere that _isn't_ the apartment or the hospital."

"I guess." I sigh "It _is_ nice to be eating something other than that shitty food from the hospital cafeteria though, I'll give you that."

"You've barely touched your food, though."

I look down at the half-eaten chicken breast and mashed potatoes on my plate.

"I can't stop thinking about the baby." I admit "I honestly don't think I will until he's safe at home with us."

"I know." He reaches across the table and takes my hand in his, rubbing his thumb in circles on the back of my palm "You're a great mom because of that."

"Let's see how the first night at home goes- no the first _week_ at home, then tell me if I'm a great mom or not." I chuckle "But thank you for dragging me out of the hospital, this has been really nice."

"I'm enjoying it too." Robbie smiles "And don't worry, Tori has been texting me. Leo is fast asleep and everything is just fine."

"Good." I sigh "God...Robbie, I honestly don't think I'll be able to go back to work anytime soon."

"That's fine." He assures me "We've talked about this, remember? If you want to stay home with him until he gets a little older, we'll be able to afford it. Your entire paycheck would've had to go to childcare anyways."

"Are you sure we'll be okay, Robbie?" I ask him "Like, really truly honestly."

"Honestly." He nods "We'll be fine if you stay home to take care of Leo."

"Then I wanna stay home with Leo."

"I knew you would." He laughs "That's totally fine. I think it would be better for Leo anyways, staying with you, rather than a bunch of strangers."

"Holy shit, we're adults." I chuckle "We're talking about money and babies that actually belong to us...what happened?"

"We grew up." Robbie smirks

"We're getting older." I sigh

"I couldn't have asked for a better person to grow older with, though." He tells me

"Awww..." I blush "I love you."

"I love you too."


	43. Chapter 43

_Cat's POV_

I close my eyes and lean my head back against the wall above the chair I'm sitting in. Leo lets out a tiny squawk and I open them again.

"Yeah bud?" I smirk "Tell me more..."

He's awake about twice as much as he used to be now, which I love because I get so much more time to interact and bond with him now.

He likes to hold my finger and will listen attentively when I sing to him. He hates his breathing tube and constantly tries to rip it out of his nose, but he has no arm strength at all, so thankfully he's never successful in doing so. He weighs four and a half pounds and is about sixteen inches long, he looks more like a full term baby than a preemie. He's still a little on the smaller side, of course, but he's getting there.

"They might let Daddy and I take you home soon." I tell him "How cool is that?"

The baby looks up at me and waves his arm around in space, like he's looking for something. I place my index finger in his palm and he wraps his hand around it, gripping it tightly and causing me to smile.

"I know, you don't understand what that means." I sigh "But trust me, it's a good thing."

I shift him so instead of laying on my lap, he's cradled in my arms. I softy run my free hand over the top of his head, smoothing out his ruffled hair. There's still not a lot of it, and it's still bone straight, but at least he's not bald.

Leo reaches up, as if he's trying to touch my face. When his and makes contact with my skin, he pulls his hand away quickly, and ends up getting caught on the necklace Robbie got me.

"That's my necklace from Daddy." I smile "It's got your name on it, pretty cool huh?"

It means nothing to him, but he still finds the necklace intriguing.

"Let's not play with that, Leo." I move his hand away "We don't wanna break that."

That seems to piss him off a little, so I give him my finger back, and that seems to settle him down.

"You used to have a brother or sister, you know." I whisper to him "We don't know what happened, but they didn't make it through. I doubt you even remember that though. I think, personally, it was a sister. Mommy's can tell those kinds of things. We won't have any way of ever knowing, and honestly, I'm not really sure why I'm telling you all of this...I guess I'm just trying to reiterate how lucky Daddy and I are to have you."

He moves his eyes, looking all around the room, probably not even paying anywhere close to attention to what I just said. Not that I expected him to anyways.

"Hang in there Leo..." I sigh "We'll be home soon."

* * *

"I think he's gonna have your smile." Robbie tells me

The nurses helped us move Leo's oxygen tank so that all three of us could sit on the couch by the windows together. Robbie is holding Leo, and I'm leaning against his shoulder, exhausted and half asleep.

"How on earth can you tell that already?" I ask "He doesn't even know how to smile yet."

"I just have a hunch." Robbie shrugs, rubbing Leo's cheek with the side of his thumb "Right little man? You're gonna have Mommy's smile."

"Let me know if he answers you." I chuckle, allowing myself to close my eyes

"Do you want to go home?" Robbie nudges me "You look tired."

"I am." I yawn "But I'll be able to make it another hour. If he's awake, I wanna be here."

"He looks like he's starting to fall asleep too." He tells me "Have you given him his bedtime bottle?"

"Yeah." I nod "Right before you got here."

"Then he'll probably go any minute." He says "Hey, do you know what today is?"

"Wednesday." I mumble

"Well yeah, it's Wednesday." He laughs "But do you know why today is significant?"

"'Cause there's half price milkshakes at Inside Out Burger." I say flatly

"You're killing me." He chuckles "Do you know what the date is?"

"No." I admit "The days all kinda blend together now. Look, I obviously don't know why today is important, will you please just tell me?"

"One year ago today..." He looks down at Leo "I brought _you_ home from the hospital. Well, your parents did at least. But I came straight from work to see you, do you remember?"

"Yeah." I nod "Tori and Jade were sitting on the front porch waiting for me when we got home."

"You've come so far in the past year." He kisses the top of my head "I'm really proud of you."

Last year at this time, I was paralyzed from the waist down. I couldn't walk and I was confined to a wheelchair. Now I can walk almost normally, although I still lean a little to my right, and if I'm tired enough, I have a noticeable limp.

"Has it really been a year?" I ask

It feels like it's been so much longer, yet it doesn't at the same time.

"It has. Crazy isn't it?"

"Yeah." I sigh "I'm surprised my mom didn't text me."

"The day isn't over yet." He reminds me "But, she might not. I think everyone is content to just focus on the fact that you're moving forward, and that Leo is too."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

Those _are_ two pretty positive things to focus on.


	44. Chapter 44

_Robbie's POV_

I look down at my son, resting comfortably in my arms in front of me. He yawns, and I can't help but allow a smile to spread across my face.

"That was a big yawn there bud." I chuckle "You _that_ tired? Or are you still just wakin' up?"

It's about 10:30 in the morning right now, so it's probably a mixture of both. Cat says the nurses usually let her feed him at some point in the next half hour, and then he'll fall asleep and nap for a bit.

Today is one of the rare days where I get to spend all day with Leo. Yes, normally Cat and I are here every Saturday and Sunday all day. But today is Thursday, the Fourth of July, so I have the day off. I'll have tomorrow off too, which means four straight days of bonding with my little man.

Cat isn't here with us right now, I was able to convince her to stop by her parent's barbeque for a few hours to say hello to her family. She hasn't seen them since probably Christmas, and I knew she's want to see Noah while he's still home from school. Of course, I offered to accompany her, but she didn't want Leo to spend the holiday alone, so here I am. Not that I'm complaining, I love spending time with him, I just wish I could spend time with him and Cat at the same time. She still refuses to drive, which is one hundred percent fine, given the experience she's had. So I had to drop her off at her parent's house this morning, and I'll pick her up again around dinner time, but all the time in between is one hundred percent dedicated to my little guy.

Of course, the nurses are trying to make the holiday as festive as possible for the babies here and their parents. When I came in today, Monica gave me a red, white, and blue glow necklace to wear, Leo's absolutely mesmerized by it. This morning, they also had me change him into a red onesie that says 'All-American Hunk' on it. I know Cat will go absolutely crazy over it when she gets here later.

"Do you know what day it is?" I ask Leo, his eyes still fixated on my necklace

I don't expect him to provide any feedback whatsoever

"It's the Fourth of July!" I tell him "Believe me, when you get older, it'll be one of your favorites because of the super cool fireworks!"

"Is he ready for lunch?" Monica asks, approaching us with a pre-made preemie sized baby bottle in hand

"He can be." I smile, taking the bottle from her "Thank you."

"No problem!"

This is another rarity. Normally, I don't get here until Cat has already given him his dinner bottle, and obviously she's the one who feeds him breakfast and lunch and all the other times in between. That's not her fault, it's just how my work schedule unfortunately works out. So usually, I only feed him two to three times a weekend when I'm here all day everyday and overnight. Not today though, today we get extra Daddy-Son bonding time.

I slip the rubber nipple into Leo's mouth and he begins sucking on it, pulling formula into his mouth and staring up at me with two, big blue eyes.

"Those eyes." I smirk "You're gonna be a lady killer one day, buddy. I'm sure of it."

* * *

"Noah wants to come and visit him." Cat tells me, playing with Leo's hand as all three of us sit on the couch by the windows later that night

"That's fine." I laugh "I'm surprised he hasn't yet, actually."

"He's lifeguarding at their neighborhood pool." She sighs "They've had him working a lot so he doesn't get a lot of free time."

"He's in college." I remind her "We were too not too long ago. Remember? We'd work as often as they'd let us just to have some extra cash laying around."

"I know, I know. I just wish he didn't go to school all the way across the country, you know? I miss having him around."

"I'm sure he misses being around." I assure her "Did you at least enjoy spending time with him today?"

"He spayed me with the hose, but yeah." She laughs "I did. What about my two favorite guys? Did you have a good time today?"

"We sure did." I smile "Didn't we, Leo? I'm sure if he could talk, he would say yes."

"I'm sure he would too." She leans forward and kisses the baby's forehead "By the way Bud, I _love_ your outfit."

"I knew you would." I smirk

There's a popping sound outside the glass behind me.

"Oh wow." Cat gasps "Robbie look, we can see the fireworks from here."

I turn and look over my shoulder so see that, yes, the Los Angeles fireworks display is clearly visible from here. I shift myself slightly, and Cat leans her head against my shoulder so we can watch. Leo lets out a small coo, bringing a smile to my face.

"I love you, Leo." Cat whispers to him

"Isn't the view great?" Leo's evening nurse, Delilah says from behind us "It's one of the perks to working holidays."

"I bet." Cat agrees

"I hate to interrupt..." She tells us "But Doctor Horn wants us to start weaning Leo off his oxygen tonight. So I'm gonna need to steal him from you for a few minutes to put a different kind of breathing tube in."

"Sure." I gently pass the baby to her "Once he's fully off oxygen, we can take him home, right?"

"Right." She grins, turning away from us and placing Leo back in his crib

"We're gonna get to take him home soon." I smile, pressing a kiss to Cat's lips "That's great!"

"Yeah..." She sighs

"You don't seem happy."

"I'm worried." She admits "Last time they tried taking him off oxygen, he had all those apnea issues. What if he stops breathing again?"

"That was _weeks_ ago!" I tell her "He's going to be fine."

"I hope so." She leans her head against my chest "I just wanna take him home."

"We will." I kiss the top of her head "Soon. Real soon."


	45. Chapter 45

_Cat's POV_

"He's still so tiny..." Jade observes from her spot on the couch next to me

"He is." I nod "A whopping five pounds, and one ounce."

Leo scrunches up his face, making him look extremely uncomfortable, before sneezing and returning to normal.

"Bless you, Leo Joel!" I grin "Kinda irritating without that breathing tube to keep you from doing that, huh?"

"Could he not sneeze with his breathing tube in?" Jade asks

"I never witnessed it." I shrug "I can't see why he would, the air was clean, so it wouldn't irritate him at all. Would it, Leo? No it wouldn't!"

"You're so good with him." She chuckles "I bet you're dying to get him out of here."

"We are." I sigh "But, he made it all the way through the night last night without any oxygen assistance. And if he does that again tonight, the doctors are saying he could be home by Friday."

"Holy shit!' Jade exclaims "Cat! That's great news!"

"Shhh! Jade!" I scold her "There's so many sets of little ears in here, don't swear!"

"I'm a grown woman, don't scold me. You get to take your baby home, Cat!" She nudges me "That's huge!"

"We _might_ get to take him home." I remind her "It all depends on how tonight and tomorrow go."

Hopefully they go well. She's right, I'm going crazy still not having him with us.

"They'll go great." She assures me "Won't they, Leo?"

"I'm sure he'd say yes if he could." I chuckle "Do you wanna hold him? You're the only one who hasn't held him yet."

"I'm afraid I'll break him." She shakes her head

"Jade." I laugh "He's a person, not a piece of glass! The only way you'll break him is of you drop him! You won't drop him...will you?"

"Well...no..." She sighs

"Here." I start to pass the baby to her "Just make sure you watch his head, okay? And don't put too much pressure on him..."

"Cat I don't know if-"

"Oh hush." I roll my eyes "See? You're both fine!"

Well...Leo is fine. Jade looks extremely uncomfortable.

"Is he okay?" She asks

"Is he crying?"

"Well no..."

"Does he look like he might cry?"

"No."

"Then he's fine." I laugh "You on the other hand, you look like I just handed you a bomb."

"I told you! I don't want to hurt him!"

"You won't!" I assure her "Listen. Hear that sound he's making? He's cooing, that means he's _happy_."

"Yeah, I don't think Beck and I are having one of these any time soon..." She sighs

"You'd be a good mom." I tell her "Once you get more comfortable with babies."

"Well hopefully I will..." She shrugs "I plan on spending a lot of time with my godson."

"You better get comfortable holding him then." I chuckle

* * *

"Testing, testing. One, two, three..." Robbie's voice comes from the baby monitor sitting on my bedside table

"YOU'RE SUCH A GOON!" I yell, laughing

"SO IT WORKS THEN!" He yells back "GOOD!"

I bookmark the page I was on and set my book down on our bed, then wander into Leo's room to check on my husband.

"Aren't you afraid all this baby proofing is gonna jinx Leo's chances of _actually_ coming home this week?" I ask, leaning against the doorframe

"Nope!" He says confidently, placing the other baby monitor on the changing table next to the crib "I think it was written in the stars for him to come home on Friday, so he will."

"I hope you're right..." I sigh

"When am I ever wrong?"

"You seriously want that list?" I raise an eyebrow at him

"No thanks, I'm good." He chuckles, walking over to me and wrapping his arms around my waist, puling me close

He leans down and presses a kiss to my lips.

"What was that for?" I smirk

"For giving me a beautiful baby." He smiles "And for marrying me."

"Aw." I grin "You sap."

"Guilty." He shrugs "Just think, in a couple of days, we'll have Leo home with us. How great is that gonna be?"

"We _might_ have Leo home with us." I remind him "It all depends on how tonight goes for him."

"Think positive, Cat."

"What about the past year and a half of my life gives me any reason to think positive?" I ask him "We were _both_ almost killed. I was paralyzed for a solid three months. I lost a child. My son was born nine weeks early and has spent the first almost two months of his life in the hospital."

"Our son." Robbie corrects me

"Right, sorry." I apologize " _Our_ son."

"Yeah, Cat. All those bad things happened." Robbie shakes his head "But you know what?"

"What?"

"We're both still alive." He tilts my chin up so we're making eye contact "You can walk again. There's not really much we can do about the baby we lost, but our son is getting the best medical attention, and he's going to be home with us _real_ soon. Yeah, shitty stuff happens sometimes. But it all works out in the end, I promise Leo will be fine."

"I'm so sick of shitty stuff happening to us, though." I pout

"I have a feeling that everything from here on out will be smooth sailing." He tells me

"You think so?"

"Yeah." He nods "I do."

"What makes you say that?"

"I dunno." He shrugs "I've just go this gut feeling."

I sigh and lean forward, burying my face in his chest. He pulls me into a hug just as Arlo makes his way in and nuzzles himself in between our legs.

"Hey bud..." I smile "All we're missing now is Leo..."

"Don't worry. Robbie kisses the top of my head "He'll be home real soon."


	46. Chapter 46

_Cat's POV_

"Stop worrying about it." Robbie sighs as we sit in morning traffic a few blocks away from the children's hospital "If something had happened they would've called us and told us."

"I can't help but worry, you know that." I roll my eyes

"I know." He reaches over and grabs my hand "I know."

"Both hands on the wheel." I warn him "You know how I feel about that."

"We're barely moving, Cat."

"Still."

This is the worst traffic has been since we've started coming this way every morning. There's construction starting today and the morning rush, mixed with the light rain that has started to fall isn't helping any.

"Maybe we should find a different route for the time being." I suggest "I don't want to have to sit in this every morning."

"Same." Robbie agrees "But hopefully we won't have to be making this commute much longer."

"You'll still have to go to work." I remind him

"Yeah, I know." He shrugs "But I'll be able to take Sunset straight down then."

I hate sitting in this traffic. I's just extra time I have to spend in a car, and it's cutting into my Leo time. I don't mind the extra time with Robbie. Usually the only time we get to ourselves is the car rides back and forth to the hospital and then maybe thirty to forty-five minutes at night, I just wish we were getting the time under a different circumstance.

The cars ahead of us move forward maybe ten feet, and as we start to inch up as well, a car from the lane next to us cuts in, causing Robbie to slam on the breaks and lay on the horn.

"Oh my god!" I exclaim, my voice full of fear "Robbie..."

"It's okay!" He assures me "We're fine, nothing happened. You're safe."

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

 _Squealing breaks._

 _Honking horns._

 _Metal colliding with metal._

 _Sirens._

"Nothing happened." I mutter to myself "Nothing happened, nothing happened, nothing happened."

"I'm gonna take the back road." Robbie tells me, signaling to change lanes so we can make the next turn "We're done with this road for a while."

"I'm sorry..." I whisper to him

"Don't be." He shakes his head "None of this is your fault."

* * *

"Good morning, Cat." Monica smiles as I enter the NICU

"Hi." I greet her "How's the baby? Did he make it through the night okay?"

"His overnight nurse told me everything went just fine." She tells me "He only woke up for normal baby stuff. Like new diapers and bottles, stuff like that."

"Thank god." I breathe a sigh of relief as we approach Leo's crib "So what does that mean for him?"

"Well, ultimately it's up to Doctor Horn..." She says "But he's probably going home."

A grin spreads across my face and every part of me feels warm and excited.

Robbie and I are going to get to take our little boy home. We won't have to spend every available moment stuck inside this hospital with him, we'll get to be at home spending time together like a complete family.

"When will Doctor Horn make that decision?" I ask

"Probably sometime tonight, after he gives him his check up."

"Okay." I nod "Thanks, Monica."

"No problem." She smiles "I'm so happy for you guys."

"I have to text my husband." I pull my phone out "He's going to be ecstatic."

I unlock the screen and open a new text to Robbie.

 _You were right, Leo did great last night. Monica thinks Doctor H is going to send him home._

"Good morning, Baby Boy." I coo, reaching into Leo's crib and picking him up "How are ya? I heard you had a good night last night!"

Leo looks up at me and flashes something that could almost be mistaken for a smile if he wasn't so young still.

"Yeah!" I grin "You're gonna get to come home with Mommy and Daddy!"

My phone vibrates in the pocket of my sweatpants, so I sit down in the chair next to Leo's crib to read it. I shift Leo in my arms, careful not to drop him, then take the phone out, unlocking the screen. It's from Robbie, as I expected it to be.

 _I TOLD you everything would start looking up! See you tonight, love you both so much!_

"Daddy says he loves you, bud." I smile down at our son "We're so excited to take you home."

But we still have so much to do. Yes, the baby monitors are hooked up, and all of the baby gates are in place, but we haven't installed his car seat yet. Or finished baby proofing. We'll be busy tonight, that's for sure.

* * *

"Lookin' good, Buddy." Doctor Horn smiles at Leo as he weighs the baby "Five pounds, one ounce still. Still tiny, but a healthy weight for a little guy like you."

"What are his chances of going home?" I ask

"Cat..." Robbie sighs "Let the man finish."

"You're anxious, I get it." The doctor laughs "He's a healthy weight, he's made it forty-eight hours off his breathing tube, and the nurses say he doesn't have any problems drinking from a normal bottle...so I can't see why we can't stick with the Friday discharge date."

"Really?" I gasp

"Congratulations." Doctor Horn smiles "He's good to go. I'll go fill out his paperwork."

He waves goodbye and turns away from the crib, walking to the offices in the front of the NICU

"Robbie!" I exclaim, turning and pressing a kiss to my husbands lips

"Woah." He chuckles "Someone's excited."

"He's coming home." I whisper "Thirty six hours from now he'll be home with us and everything will be fine."

"We've got some work to do at home then."

"Yeah." I giggle "He's coming home!"

"What do you say we head back a little early tonight then?" Robbie suggests "We can get a head start on the stuff we need to...and maybe then we can celebrate one last night of having the apartment to ourselves..."

"Well, technically we'll have it to ourselves tomorrow night too..." I smirk, biting my lip "But that's not exactly an offer I can refuse."

"I love you." He grins

"I love you, too." I kiss his cheek "And I love that little boy of ours."


	47. Chapter 47

_Cat's POV_

"Are you _sure_ it's in there right?" I ask Robbie as he grabs Leo's empty car seat out of the back of the car "Because if it's not, they won't let us take him home."

"I've double and triple checked it." He assures me, slamming the door closed and walking over to me "Come on, let's go get our son."

I sling the diaper bag over my shoulder as he takes my hand and we walk across the parking garage together, through the automatic sliding doors that lead into the hospital's lobby. I smile and say hello to the few people that I recognize from two months of coming here everyday, but for the most part, Robbie and I are both quiet. I don't know about him, but I'm too busy thinking to have a real conversation.

I knew my life was going to change when we had a baby, but it took forever for the fact that he was actually _ours_ to set in. Yes, we came here everyday and visited him, but if it got to be too much, or we needed to take a break, we were able to go home and know that he was going to be taken care of. When we go home in about an hour or so, we won't have instant access to doctors and nurses that will be able to help us. It's just going to be the two of us and the baby, then come Monday, just me and the baby. Of course, Arlo will be there, but he can't exactly help out.

We step off the elevator in the maternity ward and begin walking towards the NICU. The nurses at the desk know us by now, so we can just walk straight back to the room where we get our temperatures taken and wash our hands.

"Ready?" Robbie smiles when we're given permission to enter

"Yeah." I nod "Let's go."

Whenever a baby leaves the NICU, there's always a celebration of some sorts, since most babies, like Leo, have been there their entire life. Sure enough, when we walk in, Leo has a balloon tied to his crib, along with a sign that says 'I'm going home today!'. He's wide awake and looking around, and his face lights up when Robbie and I appear over him.

"Hey bud." I coo "Ready to get out of here?"

"We're ready to get you out of here." Robbie chuckles, wrapping an arm around my waist

"It's going to be sad seeing you guys go." Monica admits, coming up behind us

"We'll miss everyone." I assure her "Maybe not the hospital aspect of it, but everyone in it for sure."

"Thank you so much for everything you did for Leo." Robbie tells her

"Yes, thank you." I extend my arms and give her a hug "and for everything you did for both of us."

I can't tell you how many times she caught me crying and sat and talked with me until I felt better.

"It's all part of my job." She smiles "Another part is getting this little guy all situated. I have to make sure he goes into his car seat safely and that the base is installed correctly in the car."

"That's fair." I laugh

"Go ahead." She nods towards the baby "All his paperwork is filled out, we have a little goodie bag all put together for you, take him whenever you're ready."

I look at Robbie and he nods, giving me the okay to grab the baby. I reach into Leo's crib and pick him up.

"Here we go..." I coo as I transfer him into the car seat "We're leaving Leo, we're going home!"

I fasten the straps across his chest and after Monica checks that they're right, pull a navy blue receiving blanket with grey polka dots out of the diaper bag and place it over him so he doesn't get cold.

"He looks good to go." Robbie grins and reaches for the handle of the car seat

"Wait!" I stop him, reaching into the diaper bag again

This time I pull out a light blue hat and pull it over the baby's head. He looks at me with his two big blue eyes, confused, but content.

"There." I whisper "Now we're ready."

"Okay." Robbie picks up the car seat "Let's go."

* * *

"That was the most stressful car ride of my life." I admit as we walk through the doors into the lobby of our apartment complex "And that's coming from _me_."

"Driving wasn't exactly a picnic either." Robbie chuckles "I was paranoid. My entire world was sitting in the backseat."

"Aw." I grin, looking down at Leo, who had fallen fast asleep next to me on the way home "Hey, can I carry him up?"

"If you want to, sure." Robbie stops walking and sets the car seat on one of the couches

I take the blanket off of Leo and spread it out on the couch. I lift him out and swaddle him up, just like Monica has shown me how to do several times. Careful not to wake him, I scoop him up in my arms and cradle him close to me.

"Good?" Robbie asks

"Yeah, we're good."

He walks over to the elevator and hits the up button for us as I walk carefully to meet him. When the doors open he steps into the frame so they won't close on us as I walk in, then hits the button to send us upstairs.

"Can you keep Arlo under control when we get there?" I ask "I don't want him to scare the baby..."

"Of course." Robbie smiles, kissing the top of my head as the doors open again

The walk to our apartment just a few doors away from the elevator has never felt so long. I'm paranoid that if I take my eyes off Leo, something will happen to him. But if I don't look where I'm walking, I walk into a wall and we'll both get hurt. But we make it just fine.

Robbie pulls his keys out of his pocket and unlocks the door for us, holding it open and switching on the light in the hallway.

"Here we are Leo..." I whisper to the sleeping baby "We're home."

"It's a tiny little place." Robbie adds "But it'll do for now..."

Arlo trots out of the living room area and perks up at the sight of me, running over and jumping up on my legs.

"Robbie..."

"I'm on it." He assures me, setting the car seat down and picking Arlo up "Calm down, bud. Mom and I have someone we want you to meet."

I walk over to the couch and sit down, Robbie next to me with the dog on his lap.

"Arlo..." I grin "This is Leo, he's a part of our family now."

"You're not allowed to chew on him, okay?" Robbie laughs "I know we're usually pretty chill with stuff like that, but we have to draw the line at the baby."

"Yeah." I agree "It kinda took a lot of work to get him, so we'd really appreciate it if you didn't eat him."

"He'll be fine." Robbie assures me "The family who had to give him up had two young kids, remember? I bet he's used to being around babies."

"I hope so..." I sigh, looking down at the baby asleep in my arms "Oh look at him, he's so perfect."

"Just like his mom." Robbie grins, kissing my cheek "I love you both so much."

"We love you too."

* * *

Leo's baby monitor starts making noise, pulling me out of the deep sleep I had fallen into. I open my eyes and see it lighting up, so with a groan, I throw the blankets off my legs.

"I'll go..." Robbie whispers, covering me back up

"Thanks..." I smile, and close my eyes again

I lay there and wait for the cries to stop, and when they do, I relax a little bit. I know I won't be able to sleep until Robbie comes back though, so I lay and wait.

A year ago, I was still confined to a wheelchair. I was depressed and I thought I'd be that way forever, but somehow I found a way to power through and look at me now. I'm walking almost normally, and I'm married to the most wonderful man in the world, the greatest husband anyone could ever ask for. Together, we made a perfect baby, and he's sleeping in the next room. Our little Leo Joel Shapiro.

When Robbie doesn't come back in twenty minutes, I decide to go investigate. I pull myself out of bed, shrug on a sweatshirt and wander into the nursery, stopping when I reach the baby gate that keeps Arlo out, and leaning my head against the doorframe.

The lamp in the corner is switched on, and Robbie is standing in the middle of the room. He has Leo cuddled to his chest, rocking back and forth, singing softly to him.

" _If I had just one wish, Only one demand, I hope he's not like me, I hope he understands_..." Robbie sings " _That he can take this life, And hold it by the hand, And he can greet the world_...Momma's watchin' us, Little Man."

"Shhhh..." I smirk "Just pretend I'm not here."

"It's too late now." Robbie chuckles "You're busted."

I pull my sweatshirt tighter around me as I step over the baby gate, into the nursery. As I approach, I see that Leo is wide awake, sucking on a pacifier.

"Hi baby." I coo, kissing the top of his tiny head "Whatcha doin' up so late, huh?"

"He's just having a little trouble sleeping." Robbie tells me "New environment and everything."

"Is that right Leo?" I lean my head against my husband's shoulder

Robbie presses a kiss to my temple as I wrap an arm across his chest, hugging both him and Leo.

"Hopefully he'll fall asleep again soon..." Robbie whispers "Are you gonna stay up with us?"

"Of course." I smile "I love my boys."


	48. Epilogue

_Cat's POV_

"Come on, Leo." Robbie says, not even looking up from his phone "Let's go!"

"I'm commin', Daddy!" My four year old son exclaims as his father opens the car door for him

Leo lets go of my hand and runs to climb into the backseat of Robbie's car

"Will you put that away please?" I ask, taking the phone out of my husband's hand "No Mr. Big-Whig Executive stuff today, please."

"Sorry." He smirks, taking the phone back and pressing a kiss to my lips "And I'm not a big-whig executive, I'm head of my department."

"Whatever, you're a big boss." I laugh "A big boss who's son needs help with his car seat."

"Sorry Leo!" Robbie leans down and helps Leo fasten into his car sat "Let's get you all good to go!"

I can only chuckle to myself and shake my head as I turn and open the front passenger side door, sliding into the shotgun seat.

Robbie had gotten promoted to head of his department about a year ago. He still works the same hours, he just does a little more work an thankfully, gets paid more too. He was able to buy himself a newer, nicer car, which leaves his 2011 Camry for me. He's usually pretty good about leaving work at the office, but every once and a while I have to remind him to leave it be, not often though, thank goodness.

When Leo is all buckled in and ready to go, Robbie shuts the back door and runs around to the front of the car, getting into the driver's seat. As soon as he turns the key in the ignition and the car comes to life, Leo's children's CD starts playing through the car speakers.

"YAY!" Leo cheers from the backseat, clapping his hands together "Music!"

"Just like his Mom..." Robbie chuckles

"Hey!" I laugh

"It's a good thing, I promise." He leans over and kisses me before putting the car in gear and pulling out of the parking spot in the apartment complex's lot

"Ew!" Leo covers his eyes with his hands

"Oh that's gross?" Robbie asks

"Yeah!"

"But I love Mommy, why can't I kiss her?"

"It's yucky!" Leo tells him

"Alright Leo..." Robbie smiles, rolling his eyes

I look up in the rearview mirror and see him looking out the window inventively, even waving to someone on the sidewalk. He catches me looking and a grin spreads across his face.

"Hi Mommy!" He giggles

"Hey Peanut." I smile "You good back there?"

"Yeah!" He tells me "I good!"

Leo turned out to look like a perfect mix of Robbie and me. My eyes, Robbie's nose, my dimples and Robbie's smile. His hair has absolutely no curl to it whatsoever, and we have no idea how that happened. But Robbie's mom says he was the same way when he was a baby, so we're still holding out hope for a curly-haired little boy.

"Are you sure you don't want to drive?" Robbie asks me, signaling to pull out into traffic on the main street "It's not that far of a trip..."

"You know I don't like driving with Leo in the car." I sigh, picking at my nails

"Well yeah, I know." He shrugs "But you're gonna have to eventually."

"Robbie. Not today, okay?"

"Alright...sorry."

About six months ago, I finally gathered up enough courage to get behind the wheel of a car again. Andre came and sat with Leo after he went to bed, and Robbie took me an empty parking lot so there wouldn't be anyone else around for me to worry about. I only lasted about twenty minutes, and I ended the session sobbing into his shoulder. But I had done it, and since then I've been making more and more progress. I will drive on the road now, but only with Robbie or by myself, I freak out if Leo is in the car with me, and I can only last maybe half an hour total. I'm still working on it, but something is better than nothing.

"Where are we going, Daddy?" Leo asks

"You'll see, Buddy." Robbie tells him "It's a surprise."

"Oh...okay." Leo nods "Are we there yet?"

"No." Robbie laughs "Not yet."

* * *

"Where's the elevator?" Leo asks as I hold his hand, helping him up the steps and onto the front porch of the house

"This house doesn't have one."

"Our house has one!"

"No bud, we don't live in a house, we live in an apartment." I explain "This is a _big_ house. Like Grandma and Grandpa's."

"Like Aunt Jade's house?"

"Kinda." I shrug

I don't really feel like going into the difference between a townhouse and an actual house with my three-year old.

"Is there a baby at this house?" Leo asks "Aunt Jade has a baby."

Kenna Joy Oliver was born about two months ago, and she already has Leo wrapped around her finger. He loves everything about her and always wants to hold her, pitching a fit when he can't. He asked me when I would have a baby like Aunt Jade, because he wants his own at his house too. I tried explaining to him that I already had a baby, and that the baby's name is Leo Joel Shapiro. He didn't like that answer...

"No Leo." Robbie shakes his head, unlocking the house's front door "Babies live with their parents, the people who live here don't have a baby."

"Well then who lives here?" Leo looks up at me questioningly as we step through the doorway

I exchange a glance with Robbie. He smiles at me and nods.

"We do, Peanut." I tell him

"No. Silly Mommy." He laughs, shaking his head "We already has a house."

"It's kind of a tiny house, though." Robbie kneels down to Leo's level "So we're gonna live in this one now, how does that sound?"

"Can I keep all my toys?"

"Of course you can." I laugh "There will be plenty of space for them in your new room!"

"Can I see?"

"Of course you can!" Robbie exclaims, picking the little boy up, throwing him over his shoulder and running up the staircase

"Be careful!" I warn, running up behind them

Even now, almost five years after my accident, stairs can still sometime be a chore. But thanks to countless hours of physical and occupational therapy, I only notice I actually have any difficulty at all on a bad day. And thankfully, bad days are rare.

Robbie sets Leo down at the top of the stairs. The little boy's face is red from laughing so much.

"Here, come this way." Robbie takes Leo's hand and leads him to the second largest bedroom "This is your room!"

"My room!" Leo exclaims, running inside and doing laps around the space "It's so big!"

"Yeah that's kinda the point..." I chuckle "Look out the window, Leo! Check out that yard!"

"It's big too!" He grins

"Yeah!" Robbie agrees "There's plenty of room for you and Arlo to play out there!"

"Arlo's coming to the new house too?"

"Of course he is, silly goose." I shake my head "Arlo is part of the family."

"Speaking of that...Leo! Do you know who's room is across the hall from yours?" Robbie asks

"No." Leo shakes his head

"Here come look."

All three of us walk across the hallway to the slightly smaller third bedroom.

"Do I get two rooms?" Leo asks hopefully "Is this for my toys?"

"Nah." Robbie shakes his head "This room is for your new baby brother or sister."

"Baby?" Leo perks up "Where?"

"The baby's in my tummy..." I explain, kneeling down to his level "You're gonna be a big brother!"

"Mommy!" He grins, throwing his arms around my neck and hugging me "Yay!"

I wrap my arms around him and pick him up, standing up next to Robbie. He smiles and puts his arm around my shoulders, pressing a kiss to my temple while Leo is still looking away.

"I love you." I smile up at him

"I love you too." He tells me

"Hey!" Leo pouts

"Oh I love you too, baby!" I exclaim and kiss Leo's cheek "You're gonna be the _best_ big brother!"

"You certainly will." Robbie agrees "Hey, how does a pizza carpet picnic in the new living room sound to you guys?"

"Pizza?" I gasp and look at Leo "Yum!"

I put him down and he runs out of the room to explore, leaving only me and Robbie.

"Remember all those years ago, when I told you that bad things were done happening to us?" He raises an eyebrow at me

"Yeah." I smirk, leaning my head against his chest "You were right."

* * *

 **So as you can guess, this is the end of the road for this particular story. I apologize for giving literally no warning, but the past few weeks have been so hectic. I'm going to continue to update my sogfic story and It's Moments Like These, although I can't make any promises as to how often. As for anything completely new, I'm not really sure what the future holds. Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed. This story has been one of my favorites.**

 **~XOXO**


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